Before you start

CPF, for the Cartão Nacional de Saúde
Proof of address, which determines your Unidade de Saúde
Employer plan enrolment where offered
Vaccination record

Step-by-step

1
Register at the health unit covering your address
Take CPF and proof of address to the Unidade de Saúde da Família for your catchment. The Cartão Nacional de Saúde is free and links you to a family health team, to vaccination and to the free medicines list.
In personWho: YouFree
2
Take the standing vaccinations, including yellow fever
Brazil's national schedule is free at any unit. Yellow fever vaccination is part of the routine calendar nationally, and the influenza campaign opens seasonally. Bring your existing record so gaps rather than duplicates get filled.
In personWho: YouFree
3
Treat mosquito control as household maintenance
Dengue, chikungunya and Zika are transmitted by Aedes aegypti, which breeds in standing water in and around buildings. Screens, no standing water on balconies and in plant saucers, and repellent during the wet months are the practical measures. Municipal control campaigns run continuously and are worth cooperating with when the agent knocks.
In personWho: You
4
Check the tier of your employer's private plan
A plano de saúde is a standard professional benefit here. Ask which hospital network the tier admits you to and whether dependants are covered, not just what it deducts from your payslip.
Via employerWho: You
5
Or buy individually, reading the carências
Waiting periods run 24 hours for emergencies, up to 180 days for most procedures, 300 days for childbirth and up to 24 months for declared pre-existing conditions. Corporate plans often shorten or waive them.
OnlineWho: YouCommonly BRL 400–1,300 per month for an adult
6
Know which hospital you would actually go to
On the public side the Hospital Geral Roberto Santos and the Hospital das Clínicas da UFBA are the large referral hospitals, and the Rede Sarah unit is a national reference for neuro-rehabilitation. On the private side Hospital Aliança, Hospital Português and Hospital Espanhol have historically been the names plans are measured against — check the current network list rather than a reputation.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

CPF
Proof of Salvador address
Passport or CRNM
Vaccination record
Private plan card and policy, where applicable

Things most newcomers don’t know

Aedes-borne disease is a year-round household issue here, not a holiday risk.

Dengue, chikungunya and Zika all circulate in Salvador and the mosquito breeds in small volumes of clean standing water around housing. Salvador was where Zika's link to congenital syndrome was first characterised in 2015, which is why municipal vector control is so visible. The countermeasures are mundane — screens, dry saucers, repellent in the wet months — and they are the difference between an abstract risk and a fortnight of fever.

Source: Ministério da Saúde and Secretaria Municipal da Saúde de Salvador arbovirus programmes

SUS covers you regardless of immigration status, and the card costs nothing.

The Brazilian constitution frames health as a universal right and SUS units do not ask about visas. Foreign residents on private plans skip registration and then have no route to routine vaccinations, repeat prescriptions or the free medicines list. One visit with a CPF and a proof of address is the whole process.

Source: Ministério da Saúde

A private plan is bought for its hospital network, not its premium.

Two plans at the same monthly price can admit you to completely different hospitals, and in Salvador the gap between the top private hospitals and the rest of the network is wide. Ask for the list of hospitals in the specific tier, check the one nearest your flat is on it, and check the emergency department is included — not merely the outpatient clinic.

Source: ANS — regras de rede assistencial

Private plan premiums step at ANS age bands, and the jump into the last one is severe.

ANS regulates plans into ten age brackets, and crossing a bracket triggers an increase layered on top of the annual inflation adjustment. The final step at 59 is the steepest allowed. Anyone pricing a long stay from a premium quoted in their forties is looking at a figure that will not resemble what they pay later.

Source: ANS age-band regulation

Common mistakes to avoid

Not registering for a Cartão SUS because you have private cover.
Choosing a private plan on premium alone without reading the hospital network.
Leaving standing water on a balcony through the April–July wet season.
Signing a plan and then discovering the 180-day carência before an elective procedure.
Not declaring a pre-existing condition, which can void cover rather than merely delay it.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.