Lula campaigns in Minas Gerais amid health service expansions

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva visited Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, to campaign alongside Patrus Ananias and Senate candidates Áurea Carolina and Marília Campos. During the rally, Lula criticized former governor Aécio Neves, specifically regarding his past treatment of Dilma Rousseff, and urged voters to support the PT candidates to secure help in the Senate.

In a separate health-focused development, Health Minister Alexandre Padilha visited Juiz de Fora to inspect hospitals participating in the ‘Agora Tem Especialistas’ program. This initiative allows private and philanthropic institutions to perform surgeries for SUS patients in exchange for federal tax credits. Padilha reported a record of nearly 15 million surgeries in 2025, a 42% increase from 2022, and noted the expansion of robotic surgery into the public system.

Additionally, a mobile health unit, the ‘Carreta da Saúde da Mulher’, is operating in Rio Branco, Acre, providing specialized gynecological and mastology services to increase cancer screening and prevention for breast and cervical cancer.