Brazilian Ministry of Health conducts major vaccination campaign

Minister of Health, Nisia Trindade, said on Monday that the new rules for access to Bolsa Familia bring a benefit to the health of families. In order to receive the resources, mothers must prove that their children are enrolled in school and that their vaccination booklet is up to date.

Furthermore, pregnant women must undergo all the basic prenatal examinations. The minister classified the new rules as a necessity. "Vaccination is a child's right," she said during a ceremony in Rio de Janeiro where she and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva launched a national plan to reduce the queues at the Single Health System (SUS in Portuguese).

Bolsa Familia is a programme aimed at low-income families. Created in 2003 during Lula's first term in office, it will have a minimum value of R$ 600 in 2023. During the last government, led by Jair Bolsonaro, the programme was replaced by Auxilio Brasil (Brazil's new social welfare programme) in which no such conditionalities were imposed.

In October last year, after Lula won the elections last year, the resumption of counterparts was announced in interviews given by Senator Humberto Costa, who was part of the transition team of the new government. At the ceremony held on 6 February, the president highlighted the change.

"Bolsa Família is coming back and it is coming back with something important. It is coming back with conditionalities. First, mothers of children up to six years old will receive an additional R$150 reais. Second, the children have to be in school. If they are not in school, the mother loses the benefit. Third, children have to be vaccinated. If not, the mother loses the benefit," said Lula.

The federal government will begin the schedule of the National Vaccination Programme 2023 this month. According to Nisia Trindade, the Ministry of Health wants to carry out a broad movement for vaccination with society.

"We are calling the Ministry of Education, schools, social movements, managers at various levels, artists. It has to be a movement technically guided by the Ministry of Health, but a national movement with popular engagement", as reported by Rede TV!, a partner of TV BRICS.

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