Bolsa Família beneficiaries will be able to withdraw the 40 medicines available in the Popular Pharmacy Program for free. The initiative expands access to pharmaceutical assistance to 55 million Brazilians. The program was relaunched this Wednesday (7), by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in Recife. According to the president, the government’s proposal is, more and more, to include new medicines in the list of inputs provided by the program, offering “opportunities for people to live longer, for people to be able to cure their illnesses. Because today, caring for illnesses is very expensive. Any medicine is very expensive”. From now on, the program will also include the indigenous population. Initially, a pilot project will be carried out in the Yanomami Territory. The government’s objective is to expand and facilitate access, in a complementary way, to basic pharmaceutical assistance for the population served in the Special Indigenous Health Districts (DSEI). With this action, Farmácia Popular will now offer all the medications on the program’s list free of charge to this population. With new free medicines, new units were accredited in more vulnerable municipalities. Diseases The program offers free medication for the treatment of diabetes, asthma and hypertension and, from now on, also for osteoporosis and contraceptives. Also included are medicines and products with discounts of up to 90% for dyslipidemia, rhinitis, Parkinson’s disease, glaucoma, in addition to geriatric diapers. In all, the Popular Pharmacy covers the treatment of 11 diseases. Women’s health will take priority. This population will have free access to medications indicated for the treatment of osteoporosis and contraceptives. These are products that were offered by the previous program at lower prices (50% discount) and are now offered free of charge along with treatments for hypertension, diabetes and asthma. More than 5 million women are expected to benefit. According to the Minister of Health, Nízia Trindade, the next stage of the program will include men’s health, with drugs to treat prostate diseases. Service After eight years without new accredited pharmacies, the Ministry of Health resumes new qualifications, prioritizing the most vulnerable municipalities that adhered to Mais Médicos. In all, 811 cities will be able to request accreditation of units in all regions of the country, 94.4% of them in the North and Northeast. Thus, access to health becomes complete for this population – from medical care to treatment. “It is a program that considers regional differences, the gaps in care in Brazil. We are aware of the potential of Farmácia Popular in improving the health of the population and I want to highlight that a survey carried out by the Federal University of Bahia showed that the program contributed to a 13% reduction in hospitalizations for diabetes and 23% in cases of hospitalization for hypertension. This drop was five times greater in the states of the Northeast Region”, said the minister. According to the Ministry of Health, the expectation is that, by the end of this year, the Popular Pharmacy will have units in 5,207 Brazilian municipalities, equivalent to 93% of the national territory. How to withdraw To withdraw the medicine, the beneficiary just needs to go to the accredited pharmacy and present the prescription, identity document and CPF. Recognition of the beneficiary’s bond with Bolsa Família will occur automatically by the system, no prior registration is required.
Agência Brasil
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