I’m calm, says Nísia about pressure to change command in Health

The Minister of Health, Nísia Trindade, said this Wednesday (21) that her permanence in office is the prerogative of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, but that she is calm about the issue. Earlier this week, the Minister of Institutional Relations, Alexandre Padilha, denied that the President of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira, had claimed the ministry’s nomination and stated that Lula will not place the portfolio as a quota for any party. “The position of the Ministry of Health, in fact, is very important, but I have a career dedicated to the Unified Health System [SUS]dedicated to democracy. My trajectory at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, as President Lula has said, was what motivated him to call me for this position. I believe that, at this moment, improving relations with the Legislative Power has to be the focus of the government and has been”, said Nísia. When participating in an interview with radio stations during the Bom Dia, Ministro program, she highlighted the importance of achieving what she called balance in this relationship. “That, for me, is the main objective. Regarding permanence in office, it is a prerogative of the president. I am a Minister of State, I have a career and a trajectory focused on defending the Unified Health System. I feel very calm, ”she added. “The important thing for Brazil is that the Ministry of Health is strengthened. We are going through a very serious crisis. The covid-19 pandemic, in Brazil, had a much greater effect than it could have, since we lost 700 thousand lives. There was denial of several precepts of science and the dismantling of the SUS, which is our heritage. We are rebuilding this heritage and I am happy to be able to carry out this work with the confidence shown by President Lula. My conviction is to strengthen this work as much as possible while earning the confidence of the president, who defines his ministry.” Spotted fever During the program, the minister also commented on the recent cases of spotted fever identified in the country. “Unfortunately, issues related to infectious diseases that have exactly to do with environmental imbalances, and that is what marks the return of diseases and their intensification, as is the case with Rocky Mountain spotted fever, will be present. We also have to work on these causes and determinants”. “Objectively, what we are doing now is to work first with the São Paulo Health Department, where these cases appeared and where the deaths occurred, and work towards identifying the problem, mapping it in the best possible way and also contributing to clinical management, that is, for the necessary care because there is medication, this medication is made available by the SUS and, with this, it is possible to prevent people who contract the disease from worsening their health or even dying, as happened .”

Agência Brasil