Former Sergipe Health Secretaries are being asked to return R$45 million for missing SAMU funds

Two former health secretaries of Sergipe have been ordered to jointly repay nearly R$45 million for the "missing" federal funds allocated to the Mobile Emergency Care Service ( SAMU ) in the state. The charge stems from an audit that found the funds missing, as revealed by CartaCapital in April of last year.

The charge involves million-dollar transfers made between January 2022 — during the administration of Belivaldo Chagas (Podemos) — and September 2023, already under the government of Fábio Mitidieri (PSD).

A little over 20 million reais were transferred throughout 2022, when the state health department was under the responsibility of nurse Mércia Feitosa , and another 14.6 million received until September 2023 - during the period, the secretary was doctor Walter Pinheiro , who left the department in August 2024. Today, the head of SES is Cláudio Mitidieri , the governor's cousin.

Although the amounts originally transferred total approximately R$34 million, the amount demanded is higher due to interest and monetary corrections applied due to the delay in repayment.

Created two decades ago, SAMU is a 24-hour emergency care service that is part of the list of Public Health Actions and Services. In the state, the program has a central office in Aracaju and decentralized bases in thirty municipalities. Funding is tripartite—the federal government provides 50% of the investment, with states and municipalities each receiving 25%. Once the funds are deposited, the state government is responsible for administering them and reporting on how they were spent.

However, a thorough investigation by DenaSUS , the agency that oversees the funds transferred to states and municipalities for the maintenance of the SUS, revealed that the Sergipe government failed to disclose the whereabouts of the funds sent to SAMU. The justification given was that it uses a single account for all payments within the state network, which would make it impossible to generate bank statements or specific accounting reports for the program.

Involved. Former Sergipe Health Secretaries Mércia Feitosa (left) and Walter Pinheiro (right) – Disclosure/Coren Sergipe/Mário Sousa/Government of Sergipe

When the case came to light, the state health department claimed to have sent the requested receipts. "At that time, it was not possible to provide the statements individually, since the funds are deposited into a single account, as determined by Ordinance No. 3992/17 ," the department explained at the time. Even so, the documents presented did not prove the use of the resources, and the technical area of DenaSUS maintained the recommendation of full return of the amount.

The collection of the indicated amount, according to a ruling by the Federal Court of Auditors , must be made directly to the managers allegedly responsible for the damage found in the audit. The Federal Audit Court (TCU) considers that the secretary is obligated to return the funds because "in these situations, there is no evidence that they were used for any public purpose."

Based on this understanding, Feitosa was notified to return R$26.9 million, and Pinheiro, R$17.8 million. The official letters demanding payment were signed in May by Mozart Sales , Secretary of Specialized Healthcare, and Ewerton Marques , General Coordinator of Planning, Budget, and Monitoring of Financial Execution at the Ministry of Health. The deadline for reimbursement was 10 days.

The report found that, to date, the debts have not been paid off. The documents sent to the former secretaries warn that, if they are not repaid, they may be subject to a Special Audit of Accounts by the Federal Audit Court (TCU), with possible legal action and their names being registered with CADIN , a federal government debt database – this would restrict their access to credit and financing, for example.

In response to the notification, Feitosa requested an additional 30 days from the Ministry of Health on July 16 to submit the "requested documents and clarifications," claiming he was no longer in charge of the ministry and relied on information from the current administration. The request was granted.

When contacted by CartaCapital , Pinheiro stated that the process "has been in the due diligence phase" since April, with only one of the 22 audit findings still "under analysis and within the deadline." Feitosa, however, considered the notification "early."