State Secretariat of Public Health (Sesap) in RN Sérgio Henrique Santos/Inter TV Cabugi/A An order from the Public Ministry (MPRN) that supports a hearing with representatives of the state departments of Health (Sesap), Finance (Sefaz) and Planning (Seplan) points to a scenario of financial difficulties and risk for the continuity of public health services. The hearing to discuss the state health budget is scheduled for this Tuesday (14). The document states that the State accumulates R$695.8 million in processed unpaid debts and "the emergence of a new current floating debt in the order of R$29.2 million". In practice, the outstanding payments processed are debts owed to suppliers and service providers who have already fulfilled their obligations. Furthermore, the order states that the State invested, until April, 6.64% of revenues from taxes and constitutional transfers in public health actions and services, below the annual minimum of 12%. "This accounting scenario projects an immediate investment deficit of R$333,755,400.96 in settled values", says an excerpt from the document signed by prosecutor Iara Maria Pinheiro de Albuquerque. ? Click here to follow the g1 RN channel on WhatsApp g1 reached out to Sefaz and Seplan to comment on the notes, but there was no response until the last update of this report. Sesap informed that it is committed "to the various questions" and guaranteed a response by 5 pm. READ ALSO: State presents timetable of up to 16 months to complete renovation of Walfredo Action demands resumption of works at the Walfredo burn center Justice orders RN to present a plan for the financial balance of the pension The call was made by the 47th Public Prosecutor's Office of Natal after analyzing a series of technical reports prepared by the Budget and Public Policy Laboratory (LOPP), of the MPRN, which point out difficulties in executing the department's budget and high financial liabilities. According to the order, the hearing intends to discuss the Health budget execution in the second half of the year, obtain detailed data from the department's accounts and define a permanent flow for sending this information to the Public Ministry. Liabilities of almost R$700 million The document points out that state health accumulates R$695.8 million in unpaid processed payments, expenses already recognized by the State, but which remain pending payment. Furthermore, the Public Ministry states that a new floating debt of R$29.2 million was identified, formed only in the first four months of 2026, which would indicate that the pace of payments does not keep up with the execution of state network expenses. Based on the analysis, LOPP, the MP's technical body, recommended that Sesap start regularly forwarding detailed budget execution data to allow continuous monitoring of accounts. Walfredo Gurgel Hospital, in Natal Thiago César/Inter TV Cabugi Application below the constitutional minimum One of the main points highlighted by the MP is that, according to data from the Budget Execution Summary Report (RREO), the RN had applied, until April this year, 6.64% of tax revenues and constitutional transfers in public health actions and services. The partial percentage is below the minimum of 12% provided for by the Federal Constitution and Complementary Law No. 141/2012. The Federal Constitution determines that states and the Federal District allocate at least 12% of base revenue to public health actions and services. The percentage corresponds to the minimum mandatory investment floor in the sector. Impact on medicines, supplies and surgeries The order establishes a direct relationship between the financial situation and the problems of the health network. A context that contributes to “severe assistance asphyxiation”. According to the technical reports cited in the document, the budget subfunction of "Prophylactic and Therapeutic Support", responsible for purchasing medicines through Unicat, had paid off only R$8,739.53 by April this year. The value corresponds to 0.01% of a budget of R$74.1 million allocated to the area. "Faced with this Treasury liquidity blockage, the state hospital network is subjected to severe assistance suffocation", highlights the document. Central Unit of Therapeutic Agents (Unicat), in Natal Sérgio Henrique Santos/Inter TV Cabugi The agency cites impacts on service, with reports of lack of supplies, shortages and interruptions of surgeries in units within the network. "The factual result of this situation is the lack of up to 40% of inputs at Hospital Santa Catarina, shortages of reagents and blood bags at Hemonorte, widespread surgical interruptions at Giselda Trigueiro and Walfredo Gurgel hospitals, and the blockage of active beds in the psychiatric ward at Hospital João Machado". Retention of R$ 141 million The order also states that the Finance Department (Sefaz) promoted the retention of R$ 141 million in mandatory financial transfers due to the State Health Fund (Fusern). In the MP's assessment, the measure would have worsened the department's lack of liquidity and made it difficult to carry out expenditure on the state network. In the document, the prosecutor's office informs that it intends to demand from the government's economic area a disbursement schedule for the second half of the year, with an indication of the expected financial flow to recover these amounts. What will be discussed at the hearing At this Tuesday's hearing, the Public Ministry intends to demand documents and schedules from the state departments to deal with the situation. Sesap requested, among other things, an emergency schedule to pay off the floating debt, with priority for the Walfredo Gurgel, Santa Catarina and Maria Alice Fernandes hospitals. The prosecutor's office also asks for a justification for the cancellation of processed unpaid balances and a plan to regularize the purchase of medicines and supplies from Unicat. The Treasury Department's disbursement schedule to replenish resources from the State Health Fund and information from Seplan on the budgetary limits applied to the Health function will also be discussed. The hearing is scheduled for 9:30 am this Tuesday (14) and will bring together representatives from the three departments, in addition to the LOPP, the State Health Council and the Operational Support Center for Health Prosecutors (Caop Saúde).