The Prime Minister meets the chief executive of the SNS this Friday, a day after the body’s year-long constitution was published and when the government and medical unions have yet to reach an agreement on pay rises.
Having been in power for a year, the Executive Directorate of the National Health Service, headed by Dr. Fernando Araujo, still had no rules for its activities. The charter was published by decree after the President of the Republic insisted on the need to define a new organic structure for the SNS.
This meeting between António Costa and Fernando Araujo at the São João Hospital in Porto also comes at a time when there are restrictions on the emergency services of several SNS hospitals due to the refusal of more than 2,000 doctors to work overtime in addition to the mandatory 150.
This crisis prompted Fernando Araujo to meet during the day last Saturday with more than 150 specialists from various specialties and directors of about four dozen hospitals.
This Thursday, after another round of negotiations in which the government presented a proposal, Health Minister Manuel Pizarro explained that negotiations with doctors’ unions will be resumed next week, since the National Federation of Doctors (Fnam) has decided to maintain the strike on October 17 and 18.
In the proposal presented to the unions, the Ministry of Health provides a bonus of 500 euros per month for doctors providing emergency care and the opportunity to choose 35 hours per week.
Socialist sources told Lusa that the Prime Minister said during a meeting with PS MPs on Wednesday that the 2024 state budget proposal includes sufficient allocations for the sector.
The same sources said that at António Costa’s meeting with the chief executive of SNS, the central topics will be local health units (ULS), family health units (USF) and emergency services.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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