In a meeting of leaders this Monday (19), senators discussed the possibility of allocating a part of the rapporteur’s amendments – an instrument used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Congress – to guarantee the payment of the national nursing floor.
The meeting was convened by Senate President Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), exclusively to deal with the matter, after the Federal Supreme Court (STF) maintained the floor suspension last week.
The proposal to use the secret budget is seen, however, with reservations by Pacheco and the general rapporteur for the 2023 budget, Senator Marcelo Castro (MDB-PI). According to Castro, the idea of ​​using the rapporteur’s amendments that are already reserved for Health would cause the federal government to fail to comply with the minimum investment guaranteed by the Constitution.
Pacheco has already considered that there are at least four other options on the table and that one of the alternatives may be the reallocation of resources from states and municipalities.
as showed the Sheet, the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government sent the Budget proposal for 2023 with a forecast of a 42% cut in the discretionary funds of the Ministry of Health. To meet the minimum expenditure guaranteed by the Constitution, the Executive will depend on the so-called secret budget.
The portfolio will be entitled to R$ 20.3 billion for non-compulsory expenses, according to the proposal of the Ministry of Economy. At first glance, the amount seems higher than the initial R$ 17 billion indicated in the submission of the 2022 Budget project. However, of the amount planned for next year, R$ 10.42 billion is in a reserve for amendments by the rapporteur .
Senate Minority Leader Jean Paul Prates (PT-RN) told the press that the idea of ​​using the secret budget was welcomed by senators because it would help improve the image of Congress.
“These resources, R$ 10 billion, are already in the Health budget. It happens that they are free for parish, individual care… What would be done in this case would be to stamp this for the nursing floor, at least in this budget. Operationally, in terms of the budget, it would help pay that bill, and politically, it would help Congress improve its image.”
Marcelo Castro said on Monday (19) that he will propose to the Senate that the nursing floor be left out of the spending ceiling for next year, as well as the costs to maintain the current value of AuxÃlio Brasil.
“It’s not enough for you to have a source to pay because we have the spending ceiling law, which is constitutional. The two main candidates for the presidency are Lula and Bolsonaro. Both have already committed to maintaining the Bolsa FamÃlia, which today is called AuxÃlio Brazil, at R$600 because the R$600 reais are guaranteed until December,” said Castro.
“We all know that the 2023 budget does not support this expense. There is no budgetary space. There is only one alternative, which is to exceptionalize the spending ceiling. If we are really going to exceptionalize the spending ceiling to fulfill the promise that Lula and Bolsonaro did, so let’s make it exceptional to fulfill the issue of nursing, of the popular pharmacy…”, he added.
At least four other proposals are also under discussion: the reallocation of budget resources; the reissue of the repatriation of resources allocated abroad; direct allocation of Union resources to philanthropic hospitals and Santa Casa; and the Special Regime for Updating and Regularization of Assets, a proposal that has already been approved in the Senate and is in the Chamber of Deputies.
The national nursing floor, approved by Congress, set a salary of at least R$4,750 for nurses. Nursing technicians must receive 70% of this amount (R$ 3,325), and nursing assistants and midwives, 50% (R$ 2,375).
The decision of the STF that suspended the payment of the new amounts is valid “until it is clarified” the financial impact of the measure for states, municipalities, philanthropic hospitals and Santas Casas.
During the leaders’ meeting, senators said that the issue was “oversized”, as some states and municipalities pay above the floor.
“There is a certain opportunism in wanting to take advantage of this situation. Doing the math well, we will see that the problem is not that big, no”, said Senator Oriovisto Guimarães (Podes-PR). “I think we should move towards a mixed solution.”
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