It is essential to have health insurance in Brazil, as hospital and medical fees are high. For most regions of the country you don’t need to worry about vaccinations. Yellow fever shots are necessary however if you plan to visit the following states; Acre, Amazonas, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Para, Rondonia, Amapá and Roraima. For these regions vaccination against typhoid, polio and malaria is also recommended.

The public health system (SUS, Sistema Único de Saúde) in Brazil has a lot of problems, such as crowded public hospitals and medical service units (Postos de Saúde), and long waiting lines to be attended for exams and consultations, even in cases of emergency. Therefore it is recommended that you obtain private health insurance (Plano de Saúde) which can cover all medical and dental emergencies partially or completely.

Items not covered by private insurance are prescription drugs and some treatments, which have to be fully paid by the client (note that some insurers offer a discount for some drugs). Depending on your preferences you can choose from a variety of services which will be covered by the insurance or not. Many insurance companies, banks and collectives offer many different types of insurance. Also some hospitals offer insurance directly, in this case usually all exams and consultations have to be done in that specific hospital.

The more typical insurance allows you to choose the doctor, laboratory or hospital from a list of accredited professionals and institutions. If you don’t like the doctor you visit some insurers will allow you to visit other doctors. You can include or exclude treatment options like dental, specialists for skin or eye problems as well as hospital services, which will influence the monthly payment for the insurance.

Before closing a contract with one of the insurers, you should contact the local consumer defense organization (PROCON) to get more information about the reputation and the quality of the company and the health insurance.

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