Impact of changing the financing model of primary health care for municipalities in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

The article analyzes the financing of primary health care in municipalities in the state of Minas Gerais before and after the institution of the Previne Brasil Program. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, based on secondary data from 853 municipalities in Minas Gerais, with disaggregated analysis by health macro-region. Financing data from 2018 to 2022 were collected. It was found that the federal transfer based on the weighted capitation represented an increase in resources in relation to the Fixed Basic Care Floor. In contrast, the payment for performance and the incentive for strategic actions were worse in terms of the amount of resources transferred in relation to the National Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care and the Variable Primary Care Floor, respectively. The Previne Brasil Program is still being implemented by the Ministry of Health and has undergone several changes since its creation. It is suggested the returned to the Family Health and Expanded Family Health and Primary Care teams funding, as well as incorporating more vulnerability criteria into the weighted capitation and rethinking the municipal financial transfer based on indicator targets.