The Federal Supreme Court (STF) decided that the Elderly Statute, which prohibits the adjustment of monthly payments due to entry into the 60-year-old age group, also applies to contracts signed before the law came into force in 2004. There were seven votes in favor of the insured’s claim, and two against. The trial was suspended for proclamation at another time.
The result frustrates health plan operators, who argue that only contracts signed after 2004 should be affected by the law. Depending on the modulation of the decision, which will have its contours clarified at the time of proclamation, health plan operators may have to return amounts charged in excess in the past. The National Confederation of Insurers (CNseg) estimates an impact of up to R$49 billion for companies in the worst-case scenario.
“The Presidency is committed to bringing this achievement to harmonize the results here in plenary, in person, and together we can find a path forward”, said the President of the Supreme Court, Edson Fachin.
FREE LIST
10 small caps to invest in
The list of stocks from promising sectors on the Stock Exchange
The trial began in the virtual plenary in 2020, and there were already five votes to allow the Elderly Statute to apply to contracts signed before the law came into force, as long as entry into the age group occurred after 2004. Minister Rosa Weber, then rapporteur of the process, Ricardo Lewandowski, Celso de Mello, Edson Fachin and Alexandre de Moraes voted in this sense.
Today, Minister Gilmar Mendes and Minister Cármen Lúcia also voted in this regard. In his vote, the dean also suggested a “minimum retroactivity”, that is, the law is retroactive “as long as it concerns legal facts subsequent” to its promulgation, in 2004.
