The Ministry of Health has increased efforts and studied the possibilities to amend the March 2020 decree, which establishes the Health Emergency of National Importance (ESPIN), as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The text allowed the government to change regulations and the budget itself in order to implement public policies to combat the virus.
This Tuesday (15) Minister Marcelo Queiroga met with Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco. The week before, he had already met with the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira. According to the minister, in an exclusive interview with CNNa hearing with the president of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), Luiz Fux, is scheduled for the 18th.
“We are studying the issue of a health emergency of national importance being extinguished. But it is not a discretionary decision of the minister. Although it is an act of the minister, it involves not only the Ministry of Health, but the other ministries, it involves the other powers,” he said.
The Legislative and Judiciary powers can interfere in Executive Power decrees, if they deem it necessary or if they identify unconstitutionality.
The Ministry is based on the fall in the moving average of the number of cases and mainly deaths from the coronavirus, in addition to the low occupancy of hospital beds. The moving average of deaths has been falling since March 11, recording 415 in the last week.
This Tuesday, the Minister of Health confirmed two cases of the Deltacron variant in Brazil, but reinforced that the impacts on epidemiological security remain the same, not being a reason for greater concern. In the event of a significant rise in Covid-19 cases and deaths, the proposal would immediately be canceled.
After Tuesday’s meeting, the president of the Senate wrote on his social media that the minister presented data on the Covid-19 pandemic and the intention to make the state of health emergency more flexible.
“In light of the signal, I expressed to the minister concern about the new wave of the virus, seen in recent days in China, but I committed to taking the discussion to the leaders of the Senate”, reinforced Pacheco.
In addition to the epidemiological issue, of being sure that the pandemic is heading towards its end, making the state of health emergency more flexible would also have a regulatory impact, according to Queiroga.
“We cannot end important public policies due to the end of the health emergency of national importance. It is necessary that we carry out an analysis of the regulatory impact so that we can return to the situation before the pandemic without major upheavals”, said the minister.
The impact would affect the Union’s budget, which was reallocated to fight the pandemic, as well as foreign trade policies for health items. State decrees on mask use would also be interfered with without a declared emergency.
Source: CNN Brasil
