Portugal ER Delays Hit 10 Hours as Marques Mendes Defends Health Minister

Portugal’s presidential race collided this week with the country’s chronic hospital queues. Centre-right hopeful Luís Marques Mendes declared that the head of state should stay out of ministerial performance reviews, even as emergency rooms struggle with 10-hour waits and voters press for accountability.

Quick Glance

• Marques Mendes: Presidency is "not a staff-appraisal office".

• Hospitals facing record delays in urgent care and surgery.

• Jurists split on how far the President can intervene.

• Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa keeps a hands-off line in his final months.

• Debate feeds into the 2026 election calendar.

A Campaign Remark That Landed in an Over-Burdened ER

Speaking to reporters in Braga, the former PSD leader said a President “doesn’t hire or fire line managers” and should focus instead on national cohesion. The comment came after opposition MPs blamed Health Minister Madalena Cruz for winter gridlock in SNS emergency units. By defending the minister’s autonomy, Marques Mendes positioned himself as a guardian of institutional boundaries, even while acknowledging the “fair anger” of patients left on trolleys.

Why the Health Service Won’t Leave the Headlines

For months, Portuguese media has carried images of ambulance backlogs and packed waiting rooms. Latest data show:• Average yellow-triage cases wait 3 to 10 hours in Greater Lisbon.• 200 k people still await non-oncology surgery; 7 500 need urgent cancer operations.• Almost 1.6 M citizens remain without a family doctor.• Health spending per person stands 20 % below the EU average.These numbers have turned the SNS into the election’s emotional core, eclipsing even economic issues.

What the Constituição Really Says

Under Article 199, the President appoints ministers only on the Prime Minister’s proposal. Removal works the same way. “Performance grading” is not listed. Constitutional scholar Jorge Bacelar Gouveia notes that a President may dissolve parliament if governance collapses, but cannot cherry-pick cabinet changes. Others, like Ana Rita Dias, argue that moral suasion—publicly praising or criticising portfolios—remains a soft power tool that Portuguese heads of state have used sparingly.

Marcelo’s Farewell Style: Distance and Optimism

In his ninth and final New Year’s address, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa urged “strategic cooperation” between top institutions yet avoided naming ministers. On 11 January he applauded the expansion of early voting as a “democratic leap,” reinforcing his preference for procedural progress over personal censure. Insiders say the Palace believes overt intervention would hand political ammunition to anti-establishment candidates.

Ripple Effects on the 2026 Ballot

Pollsters at ICS-ULisboa detect a rising bloc of swing voters—mainly middle-aged urban dwellers—who rank health care as their number-one concern. For Marques Mendes, drawing a red line around presidential powers could reassure centrists wary of hyper-activist presidents. Yet it risks looking detached if the winter surge worsens. Socialist contender Marta Temido, herself a former health minister, has already promised a “national pact on waiting times,” daring rivals to match her specificity.

The Numbers Behind the Frustration

| Indicator | Latest figure | YoY change || --- | --- | --- || Urgent care wait (yellow) | Up to 10 h 43 min | +12 % || People on surgical list | 200 307 | –2.8 % || Oncological surgeries overdue | 19.5 % of total | +1.4 pp || Calls to SNS24 | 5.2 M | +74 % || Citizens w/o GP | 1 542 989 | –3 % |

What Comes Next

The new SINACC platform, scheduled for rollout this quarter, will let patients track queue positions in real time—and force hospitals to offer alternatives within 48 hours once legal limits lapse. Whether that transparency cools voters’ tempers or highlights deeper funding gaps remains to be seen.

Politically, every extra hour a patient waits in casualty puts more pressure on candidates to clarify the presidency’s role. For now, Marques Mendes is betting that respecting constitutional lanes will resonate more than demanding cabinet reshuffles. In a country where most people still trust the SNS concept, but not always its execution, that bet could decide who moves into Belém Palace.