Is Portugal’s National Health System is prepared to face the demands of the Portuguese drug policy?
Our national care system covers the national territory through a number of operating units. First among these we have the Comprehensive Response Centers (CRI), that are 23 in number across the nation, and we also have approximately 60 treatment centers in outpatient services that offer treatment for free to all. We also have inpatient care for brief hospitalizations –for 10 to 15 days- for detox. There are also three units of free long term hospitalizations, where people stay for a year on average. We also have a network with approximately 60 private therapy units that are managed by NGOs, and where we cover 80% of treatment costs. The remaining 20% are left to the patient, his or her family or in the event that these expenses cannot be paid for, they can be covered by social security. The fourth type of unit that we have are the three units for alcoholcs in the north, center and south – Oporto, Coimbra and Lisboa – that joined the IDT in 2006 when the institute took over certain respo
