Government calculates impact of MP on nursing floor, and sector complains of delay – 02/22/2023 – Health

The government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) is evaluating the fiscal impact of the national nursing floor, one of the issues that still prevent the publication of the MP (Provisional Measure) to unlock payments. Meanwhile, the sector has been complaining about the delay in publishing the measure.

The MP needs to be edited to regulate the payment of the resources, which will act as a complementary financial assistance to fund the minimum wage. It will also be necessary to create a specific heading in the Budget to make transfers feasible.

An interministerial group, formed by the Civil House, Health, Finance, Planning and AGU (Attorney General of the Union), was created on February 13 to try to move forward with the wording.

The Ministry of Health was responsible for apportionment criteria for transfers to states and municipalities. According to people interviewed by the Sheetthe economic area is assessing the economic impact of paying the floor —today one of the obstacles to issuing the measure.

The issue of the MP depends on the estimate of the fiscal impact, hence the need to discuss the numbers.

“No one is understanding this delay, because until then we knew that they were just organizing how the money would be distributed”, said Daniel Menezes de Souza, counselor at Cofen (Federal Nursing Council).

In an attempt to respond to the sector, which last week organized demonstrations across the country, Lula and the Minister of Health, Nísia Trindade, promised to resolve the problem quickly.

“Nursing colleagues, you can rest assured that we’re going to solve your problem. And we’re going to take care of it. We’re just trying to harmonize the salary ceiling for nurses with the issue of small towns and Santas Casas, but I’ll be more than happy to invite nurses and nurses in Brazil and say your problem is solved,” said Lula at an event in Salvador.

Nísia, on the other hand, said last week that the first version of the draft of the Provisional Measure for financial supplementation that makes the national nursing floor possible was completed.

“The President of the Republic has already expressed his opinion on the subject and we are going to work quickly to conclude this process”, declared the minister.

Deputy Mauro Benevides Filho (PDT-CE), who has participated in discussions on the subject, said that the criteria are ready.

“We produce [membros do Ministério da Saúde, dois parlamentares e dois membros da enfermagem] a draft of the Provisional Measure, we handed it over to Minister Nísia, who handed it over to Rui Costa [ministro da Casa Civil], who named a group. The intention is to try to improve the Provisional Measure, but the criteria for the distribution of resources to the municipalities are ready”, he said.

The law that created a national wage floor for nurses, technicians and nursing assistants and midwives was sanctioned by then-president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) in August last year. He vetoed the passage that provided for an automatic readjustment.

The proposal sets a minimum wage of R$ 4,750 for nurses. Nursing technicians should receive 70% of this amount, and nursing assistants and midwives, 50%.

The floor was created after the approval of a PEC (Proposed Amendment to the Constitution) by Congress, in July 2022, with the aim of providing legal certainty to a bill that dealt with the same topic.

The original proposal, however, did not foresee the financial impact of the measure for states, municipalities and hospitals. Nor did it state how the cost would be met. Without detailing, Minister Luís Roberto Barroso, of the STF (Supreme Federal Court), decided, in September, to suspend the national nursing floor law.

The decision was given in action filed by the National Confederation of Health, Hospitals and Establishments and Services. The minister stated that the organization made “plausible allegations” of possible “mass layoffs” with the new rule.

As a result, the National Congress enacted the Nursing PEC in December last year, which directs resources towards the payment of the category’s minimum wage.

The text defines that the nursing floor will be funded by the financial surplus of public funds and the Social Fund. The resources will be used to pay the new salaries in the public sector and in philanthropic entities and service providers that have a minimum of 60% of care for SUS patients (Sistema Único de Saúde).