The Mato Grosso Court ordered the municipality of Tangará da Serra, 242 km from Cuiabá, to pay R$200,000 for collective moral damage due to failures in actions to prevent and combat dengue, chikungunya and zika. The decision also determined a series of measures to reinforce the control of arboviruses, including the hiring of 25 agents to combat endemic diseases (ACEs), cleaning streams and carrying out joint efforts in neighborhoods with the highest rate of infestation.
TV Centro América contacted the city hall, but did not receive a response until the last update of this report.
The decision by Judge Diego Hartmann of the 4th Civil Court of Tangará da Serra, made available last Friday (11), responds to a lawsuit filed by the Public Ministry of Mato Grosso (MPMT), which highlighted the insufficiency and inefficiency of the measures adopted by the municipality over the last few years.
According to the process, the problem has been monitored since 2020 and resulted in the municipality declaring a public health emergency situation in 2024.
The decision cites data from the Arbovirus Monitoring Panel of the Ministry of Health and points out that Tangará da Serra had an incidence rate higher than the limit of 300 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, considered a high incidence for 2026. According to the ruling, the municipality also recorded two deaths from arboviruses in the year.
The judge also highlighted that, although the municipality had fulfilled part of the obligations previously established in the process, some measures remained pending. Among them were the cleaning of streams, formal training of professionals and the regular dissemination of epidemiological bulletins.
According to information presented by the municipality itself, the city maintained between 35 and 38 agents for a population of approximately 105.7 thousand inhabitants. The Environmental Surveillance Coordination recognized that the number considered ideal would be 63 agents, which represents a deficit of 25 professionals.
The decision determines that the municipality adopt administrative measures to overcome this deficit, through a public selection process, a simplified emergency selection process or another modality provided for by law. The process schedule must be presented to the Court within 60 days, and the hiring must be proven within 10 months.
Deadlines for fulfilling obligations:
Immediate obligations
Among the immediate measures, the municipality must block reported cases of dengue, chikungunya and zika within 24 hours of identifying each suspected case, with the application of insecticide by agents combating endemic diseases within a radius of 150 meters from the likely site of infection.
You must also fill out the notification and investigation forms for suspected cases and enter the data in the Notifiable Diseases Information System (Sinan).
Another determination is the publication of epidemiological bulletins every 15 days on the city hall's official website. If the incidence rate exceeds 300 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, disclosure must be made daily.
The Court also ordered the municipality to effectively exercise its health police power in cases where residents refuse to allow agents to enter properties.
Obligations to be fulfilled within 30 days:
The municipality must prepare and publish a contingency plan for the treatment of patients with dengue, chikungunya and zika, providing health units with the necessary materials and supplies.
Create and maintain a hotline channel so that the population can report mosquito outbreaks, with the contact number widely publicized.
Obligations to be fulfilled within 60 days:
Promote the cleaning of streams and other water sources within the urban perimeter, in addition to carrying out monthly joint efforts in neighborhoods with the highest rate of building infestation.
Large holes and ditches opened by erosion must also be filled in unpaved areas and deactivated wells.
Another measure is the training of professionals involved in caring for patients with dengue, chikungunya and zika, at all levels of health care.
The decision also determines the integration of community health agents and Family Health teams into arbovirus prevention and control actions.
Obligations to be fulfilled within 120 days:
The creation of a Municipal Intersectoral Steering Committee to Combat Arboviruses, with the participation of the Municipal Health Council, residents' associations, civil society and representatives from surveillance areas.
Obligations to be fulfilled within 180 days:
The municipality must prepare a structural reform plan for the public policy for preventing and combating arboviruses, with goals, indicators and implementation schedule.
