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Health

Healthcare system, public health, medical news, and wellness updates from Portugal.
Government Blocks Eutanásia Implementation Three Years After Law 22/2023 Citing Acórdão 307/2025 Constitutional Court Ruling — Portuguese Sign-Ups With Switzerland's Dignitas Climb to 80

Government Blocks Eutanásia Implementation Three Years After Law 22/2023 Citing Acórdão 307/2025 Constitutional Court Ruling — Portuguese Sign-Ups With Switzerland's Dignitas Climb to 80

The Ministry of Health says it cannot move on assisted-dying regulation without 'segurança jurídica' after the Constitutional Court's Acórdão 307/2025 struck down core provisions of Law 22/2023. The number of Portuguese registered with Switzerland's Dignitas has now reached 80.
The Portugal Brief
SPAIC Lifts a Continental Pollen Alert From Friday Through 7 May — Cypress, Pine, Oak, Birch and Olive on the Tree List, Grasses and Plantain on the Weed List, and Seven Regions Inside the High-Concentration Window

SPAIC Lifts a Continental Pollen Alert From Friday Through 7 May — Cypress, Pine, Oak, Birch and Olive on the Tree List, Grasses and Plantain on the Weed List, and Seven Regions Inside the High-Concentration Window

SPAIC has placed mainland Portugal under a high atmospheric-pollen advisory from Friday 1 May through 7 May 2026. Cypress, pine, birch, oak, cork-oak and holm-oak top the tree list; grasses, plantain, sorrel and nettle lead the weed list across seven regions.
The Portugal Brief
March Budget Surplus Shrinks to €209 Million as €1.06 Billion in SNS Debt-Regularization Hits the Books — IRC Drops 25.4%, Investment Spending Climbs 53.6%, and the Headline Hides a Real Improvement

March Budget Surplus Shrinks to €209 Million as €1.06 Billion in SNS Debt-Regularization Hits the Books — IRC Drops 25.4%, Investment Spending Climbs 53.6%, and the Headline Hides a Real Improvement

Portugal's March surplus fell €1.4bn YoY to €209M as a €1.06bn SNS debt-regularization payment landed in the month. Strip the one-off and the shortfall narrows to €340M; IRC collections fell 25.4%, investment spending jumped 53.6%, social contributions climbed 7.4%.
The Portugal Brief
Violence Against SNS Healthcare Professionals Climbs to a Record 3,429 Cases in 2025, Up 33% Year-on-Year — Ordem dos Médicos Says the Real Number Is Far Higher and 60% of Reported Episodes Are Psychological

Violence Against SNS Healthcare Professionals Climbs to a Record 3,429 Cases in 2025, Up 33% Year-on-Year — Ordem dos Médicos Says the Real Number Is Far Higher and 60% of Reported Episodes Are Psychological

Violence against SNS healthcare professionals jumped 33% to a record 3,429 cases in 2025, with 60% psychological and 21% physical. Ordem dos Médicos warns the real figure is higher and points to the April 2025 law making assaults on healthcare workers public crimes.
The Portugal Brief
Public-Private Hospital Relaunch Misses Its April Deadline — ACSS Comparator Study Slips Past the Government's Own Cut-Off, Even as the OE 2026 Lifts the PPP Budget by 40% to €325M for Braga, Loures and the Lisbon Arc

Public-Private Hospital Relaunch Misses Its April Deadline — ACSS Comparator Study Slips Past the Government's Own Cut-Off, Even as the OE 2026 Lifts the PPP Budget by 40% to €325M for Braga, Loures and the Lisbon Arc

Six months after the government in October 2025 set itself an April 2026 cut-off, the Administração Central do Sistema de Saúde has still not delivered the study that the Ministry of Health is supposed to use as the technical justification for...
The Portugal Brief