Court Orders São Paulo to Pay R$24.8 Million Over Lapse in Legal Abortion Access

Overview

• The decision found the city failed to restore services at Hospital Maternidade Vila Nova Cachoeirinha or properly refer patients within the public network.
• Judge Simone Gomes Rodrigues Casoretti described the conduct as omissive and institutional disobedience and rejected arguments about missing patient identifiers.
• The penalty equals R$50,000 per day across 497 days between January 22, 2024 and June 2, 2025.
• The funds will go to the state child and adolescent rights fund to support projects for rape victims and access to legal abortion.
• The municipal administration said it will appeal and asserted care is offered at four city hospitals, while prosecutors documented at least eight victims forced to seek care at state facilities or in other states.