Judge approved that state must define advance payment increase

Federal Civil and Commercial Court No. 8 declared: Unconstitutionality of Articles 267 and 269 of DNU 70/2023, which removed state control over price increases for prepaid pharmaceutical companies. The judgment was made in the context of the Amparo case, in which the victim was represented. Center for Law and Society Research (CELS).

Clause declared unconstitutional by Judge Marcelo Gota They abolished a key function of the Health Services Regulatory Authority: the power to approve and control fee increases and review their reasonableness. DNU 70/2023 thus allows prepaid drug companies the freedom to set prices as they wish, with the only restriction being to differentiate amounts by age group.

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The ruling announced Thursday adds to a series of judicial rulings questioning the scope and social impact of the giant decree signed by President Milais in the first month of his administration.

The judicial decision emphasized that the deregulation changed the balance between the right to health and corporate profitability, and customers were no longer protected from “significant, abusive, and unreasonable” price increases.

Justice Gotha argued that the executive branch had not demonstrated a situation of “necessity and urgency” that would justify legislation by statute. He pointed out that the government itself sent the draft Base Law to parliament and called for an extraordinary parliament to be held immediately after the DNU, countering that it was impossible to process the law through normal means. he also lack of rationality Regarding the reading of the decree that caused a general economic crisis, but did not link it with the suppression of health care mechanisms. As a result, the application of Articles 267 and 269 affected higher-level constitutional rights, including the right to health and life.

The ruling re-enacts a provision that requires the Insurance Commissioner’s Office to reauthorize and supervise increases in upfront drug costs for eligible patients. The judgment emphasizes that, despite their private nature, medical companies perform important social functions that force them to prioritize people’s well-being over profits.

Senate debates administration of statutes

In the coming days, the Senate will debate a project to reform Law No. 26,122, which governs the parliamentary procedure for administering government ordinances, in order to limit the executive’s legislative powers and strengthen the role of parliament. In this context, the judgment joins a series of judgments reaffirming the principle of separation of powers, the need for de facto exceptions, and the obligation of states to guarantee economic and social rights even in times of crisis.

Justice Gota asserted that the right to health cannot be subordinated to the logic of deregulation because it is “inextricably linked to the right to life.”