Portugal’s court of Auditors (Tribunal de Contas) has had to refuse permission for Coimbra’s IPO cancer hospital to buy medication, on the basis that the necessary funds are not available. This is not a ‘new’ situation, the court has stressed. It has repeatedly alerted to the under-funding of SNS State hospitals, as have the hospitals themselves. In a note today, blocking two contracts for the purchase of over €2 million in cancer meds, the court referred to the growing costs of purchasing oncological medicines, and the funding ‘ceiling’ available for this purpose “having not kept up with this growth”. It is appealing now for “an adequate legislative solution”, or it will simply have to go on refusing hospitals permission to buy the medication their patients so critically need.
Court of Auditors refuses to allow cancer hospital to buy medication
António Costa's last government frequently spoke about increasing SNS funding. The Court of Auditors says today that 'underfunding' has been prevalent for years.
