A political analysis of the national health council composition (2015/2018)

Abstract

This is a political analysis of the institutions that are part of the National Health Council (CNS), elected for the triennium 2015/2018. This case study, developed at CNS, was based on Testa's strategic thinking and the concepts of state actors and societal actors. Data were produced from the analysis of documents from three sources related to the council’s electoral process, to its inter-sector committees and to the minutes of the 2014-2017 meetings. In addition, the advisers were interviewed during the research period. Although the board is made up of 144 counselors, with 48 full members, a restricted core of councilors concentrates CNS main activities and influences its positioning. The analysis of power disputes in the CNS allowed the identification of interests related to the struggle for recognition, the expansion of profit making in the health sector and the defense of the constitutional SUS. Despite the plurality of interests, it was identified a political alignment between the forums regarding the defense of the SUS, seeking to broaden the power of the CNS in the decision-making process of health policy. This convergence reveals how compelled the CNS is, given the current situation of social security dismantling.