The diploma that regulates the hiring of doctors to provide services was published this Tuesday in the Official Gazette of the Union. This establishes a 50% fine for doctors who are absent without prior notice, a problem that affects several SUS hospitals.
Doctors providing services who are absent from the service of a Local Health Unit (ULS), without notifying them with a minimum 48 hours noticethey will be penalized, and will have a 50% cut in the amount they would be entitled to in the payment of fees corresponding to the next shift.
According to , the regime prevents hiring in medical service provision scheme who left the SUS in the last two years or those who, being resident doctors with training included, do not apply when there are vacancies within a distance of 60 kilometers of the unit that completed their internship.
In cases of incompatibilities, the regime also includes doctors who are exempt from providing emergency services in the SNS entities whose staffing list they are part of, as well as those who have declared themselves unavailable for additional work or because they have already reached the legally stipulated annual limit (250 hours).
As for doctors without specialized training, they can only be hired if they are legally qualified to practice medicine independently, have adequate professional civil liability insurance and their functions are intended to guarantee the functioning of emergency services and are supervised by a specialist doctor in the corresponding area.
The regime allows the hiring of intern doctors who are undergoing specialized training and, in accordance with the regulations of the Medical Association, can join the emergency service team.
The diploma also includes a transitional rule that defines that contracts for the provision of medical services in execution on the date of entry into force of the decree-law (July 1, 2026) must be adapted by December 31, 2026.
It is also expected that, within a maximum period of one month from the date of publication of the decree-law, the SShared services of the Ministry of Health (SPMS), together with the Central Administration of Health Services (ACSS), have to adapt computer systems for registration purposes.
At the end of 2025, doctors known as on-duty doctors created an association to contest measures by the Ministry of Health to limit the use of these professionals, even admitting the possibility of paralyzing emergency services, which did not happen.
Last year, the SNS spent around 250 million euros with the hiring of doctors on duty, the majority to ensure emergency shifts, an increase of 17.3% compared to 2024.
The most recent data point to the existence of more than 4600 professionals working on a task basis in the SNS.
