Portugal

SNS system down. Doctors prevented from passing recipes and consulting processes

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Based on a feed excerpt; full article content has not been acquired. Source evidence retrieved 19/10/2026, 11:11:24 UTC.

Briefings

Since approximately 10:00 AM on October 19, 2026, the Portuguese National Health Service (SNS) IT system has been down across multiple local health units, preventing doctors from issuing prescriptions and accessing patient electronic records. FNAM Vice-President Joana Bordalo and Sâ stated that PEM and the Electronic Health Record (RSE) are completely unavailable, with reports of the outage spreading nationally. The Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, was cited for not modernizing the system or providing adequate tools for basic medical tasks. Doctors reported delays in consultations and inability to access patient data, with the situation described as unacceptable and recurring frequently despite official notifications.

Key points

• The SNS IT system was down since approximately 10:00 AM on October 19, 2026, affecting multiple local health units and preventing doctors from issuing prescriptions and accessing patient records.
• FNAM Vice-President Joana Bordalo and Sâ reported that PEM and the Electronic Health Record (RSE) are completely unavailable, with reports of the outage spreading nationally.

Context

The incident occurred in Portugal's National Health Service (SNS) on October 19, 2026, causing widespread disruption to medical operations. The outage prevented doctors from issuing prescriptions and accessing patient records, with reports indicating the issue may be national in scope. The Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, was cited for not modernizing the system or providing adequate tools for basic medical tasks.

Limitations

Evidence covers only the initial outage period starting around 10:00 AM on October 19, 2026. Reports of the outage spreading nationally are based on anecdotal accounts from specific health units, not confirmed nationwide statistics. The exact duration of the outage and the total number of affected units are not specified in the provided evidence.

Generated by Bittrees-hosted qwen35-2b sha256:aaf42c8b7c3c on 19/10/2026, 12:08:44 UTC. Based on publisher-provided feed evidence; may not cover the full original article. Check the source for details.

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