Public-private relation in the Brazilian policy of tertiary care for cardiovascular conditions

Specialized health care in Brazil has been provided by the private sector under public regulation and financing since the 1950s. It continued after the promulgation of the 1988 Federal Constitution, which also created the Unified Health System (SUS). In the last decades, the share of the private sector has increased in tertiary care, including cardiovascular services, generating changes in SUS. This study analyzes the public-private relationship in the National Tertiary Care Policy for Cardiovascular Conditions from 2008 to 2014. The results indicate that, compared to the public sector, the private sector has a greater share in both tertiary care for cardiovascular conditions and receivables for providing health services. This points to a contradiction in the management of the health system in Brazil, which, albeit public, all-population-oriented, and free in its conception, has privileged the private sector.