Brazil Relaunches Brasil Saudável Program to Eliminate Key Diseases by 2030
Brazil’s Ministry of Health relaunches the Brasil Saudável program in 2026, aiming to eliminate major infectious and socially determined diseases by 2030 through intersectoral collaboration and secured funding.
- • Brasil Saudável program relaunched on October 3, 2023, targeting elimination of key infections by 2030.
- • Program coordinates 14 ministries to address 11 diseases and 5 infections related to vertical transmission.
- • 2026 highlighted as a pivotal year with secured budget and planned certifications for disease elimination.
- • Success depends on integration of health policies with social assistance, housing, sanitation, education, and human rights.
- • Partnerships with institutions like Fiocruz and ongoing intersectoral meetings planned to boost program impact.
Key details
On October 3, 2023, Brazil's Ministry of Health relaunched the Brasil Saudável program, a major public health initiative aimed at eliminating infections and socially determined diseases by 2030. The relaunch meeting brought together representatives from 14 ministries and technical teams to coordinate efforts against 11 priority diseases, including tuberculosis, leprosy, malaria, and infections linked to vertical transmission such as hepatitis B and congenital syphilis.
Mariângela Simão, Secretary of Health Surveillance and Environment, underscored 2026 as a pivotal year for solidifying actions and achieving the program's strategic goals with secured budget funding. She emphasized that the program’s success depends on intersectoral policies that go beyond health, involving social assistance, housing, sanitation, education, human rights, and justice sectors. This integrated approach addresses social and economic determinants like hunger and poverty that affect health outcomes.
Director Draurio Barreira highlighted past progress despite limited resources and noted that the guaranteed budget allows execution of projects including the certification of eliminating vertical transmission of hepatitis B and trachoma, expanding microplanning in priority municipalities, and reducing malaria cases within the year 2026.
The program, created by presidential decree in 2023 and expanded in 2024, aligns with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Partnerships with institutions such as Fiocruz have been reinforced, and ongoing bilateral and intersectoral meetings are planned throughout 2026 to strengthen collaboration and enhance the program’s impact.
Overall, the relaunch of Brasil Saudável represents a comprehensive governmental strategy to reduce health inequalities by combining targeted disease control with broad social policy integration targeting the root causes of disease.
This article was translated and synthesized from Brazilian sources, providing English-speaking readers with local perspectives.
