Health predominates in debate of parties without parliamentary representation

Health was one of the topics highlighted in the debate on Tuesday, in which RTP joined the 12 parties without parliamentary representation that compete for the legislatures.

At the meeting were also addressed issues related to renewable energy, housing, corruption, immigration and regionalization. Complaints to the current political system and the coverage that the media gives the small parties also had discussion.

The co-president of Volt Portugal, Duarte Costa argued that it is necessary to make the National Health Service (NHS) more efficient and affordable. To this end, it proposed the appreciation of health professionals, career progressions for merit, the use of health professionals such as the doctors of the tasfers, the digitization of the NHS and the bet on preventive health.

The President of Nodes, citizens! He considered that « Portugal has a health of excellence in the NHS » and that it « recommends itself to many countries of the Western civilized world », but criticized the existence of the executive direction of the NHS that claimed to be « a megalophic structure » that « makes no sense to exist. » According to Joaquim Rocha Afonso, « we need to cut into fat (from the NHS), cut into leaders. There is more than enough money for health, but we have management problems and there is a lack of courage to make unpopular decisions. »

Also Marcia Henriques, president of Reacting to include recyclary (RIR), the second most voted party in 2024 (26,121 votes), said that “there is a lack of management” and “effectiveness in management” in the NHS, arguing that the state should hire newly graduated doctors to put in health facilities (ULS).

In turn, the head of the list of the National Democratic Alternative (DNA) – the most voted of small parties in the legislatures of 2024 (102,132 votes) – by Lisbon, defended the end of the voluntary interruption of pregnancy paid by the state, arguing that there are “a growing number of women in the national health service that do abortions without any medical justification”.

Joana Amaral Dias also criticized the number of foreign women who abort in the NHS and referred to the thousands of immigrants who are in the country “registered and without employment”.

Already the president of Raise-You, Rui Fonseca and Castro, considered that « there is health for some and health for others » and argued that doctors should be required to stay in the NHS. To this end, he said, they must be better paid and have better working conditions.

Asked how he intends to increase state expense, Rui Fonseca and Castro replied: “It takes other places, it is an insertion social income, with the unemployment allowance for immigrants, the financing of associations and support for immigrants or the political movement of the LGBTQ+group+”.