The Portuguese Fertility Association (APFertility) expressed concern today, February 14, at the delay in opening the medically assisted procreation center in the Algarve, considering it "inadmissible" that users have to travel hundreds of kilometers to have access to basic treatments .
«[…] More than a month after the scheduled date for its opening, there is no indication of a request for it to work with the National Council for Medically Assisted Procreation or changes in terms of infrastructure and human resources for it to become a reality» , pointed out APFertility in a statement.
According to the president of the association, Cláudia Vieira, mentioned in the document, the inauguration of the center in the district of Faro it was planned for January, "but it didn't happen", and there is no statement from the Ministry of Health to justify the delay in opening the center of the south.
For the official, it is “inadmissible that there are beneficiaries of the National Health Service obliged to travel hundreds of kilometers to have access to care and treatments that constitute basic rights of any taxpayer”.
«Women and couples who clung to the hope of no longer traveling several hundred kilometers to be helped feel disappointed with what they consider to have been a false expectation, as many confessed to APFertility by phone or email», says Cláudia Vieira .
The association recalls that it was the then Assistant Secretary of State and Health, António Lacerda Sales, who last year announced the inauguration in January 2023 of the Algarve's medically assisted procreation center at the Centro Hospitalar Universitário do Algarve.
For APFertility, there is «lack of will of the successive Governments and the lack of a realistic budget for this area of health».
“People facing this problem have a right to receive the support they contribute with their taxes. This negligence has existed for far too long and these beneficiaries deserve due respect», reads the note.
APFertility adds that its concerns have already been expressed to the parliamentary groups of the PS, PCP, Livre and Chega, who informed that "they would question the guardianship to find out if there are deadlines for the center [do Sul] to become a reality".
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