The Government of São Paulo will allocate R$3.4 billion, collected by state lotteries, to the Health sector. The gaming model will be introduced in the state through a new concession valid for 15 years.
Thus, the choice of the company that will operate the system will take place in an auction scheduled for October. To reduce social vulnerability, the project will require the investment of values in essential areas.
History and Legislation
At this first moment, the government chose Health as the destination of the resources. “It is an important auction because it generates interesting revenue for the State. It will be able to be used fully in Health. This area is increasingly under pressure with the aging of the population and, therefore, will require more resources”, stated Governor Tarcísio de Freitas.
The Federal Supreme Court (STF) released the state lottery model in 2020, deciding that the Union could not monopolize the service. But, in São Paulo, the Legislative Assembly (Alesp) approved the system in 2022. The objective is to bring new sources of financing for public equipment in Health and Education, for example.
State lotteries already exist in other regions, such as Rio de Janeiro and Paraná. The São Paulo concession underwent public consultation and is among the state projects scheduled for auction later this year. The service will be offered in physical and online spaces, in the following ways:
- Specific prognoses
- Sports predictions
- Numerical predictions
- Instant lottery (like “scratch card”)
Thus, the decision on the models will be the responsibility of the company winning the concession.
In any case, the winning company will be required to install at least 31 exclusive points of sale distributed throughout the administrative regions of São Paulo.
Thus, the aim is to create concept stores for the services provided and cover all regions of the state. Therefore, the installation of these points must follow some rules:
- Places with high visibility and high flow of people
- Respect a minimum distance of 300 meters from daycare centers or primary and elementary education units
Lottery investments and certifications
The planned investments cover management and operation systems for lottery modalities. Therefore, to guarantee the availability, security and suitability of the system, international certifications will be requested.
Furthermore, access will be restricted to people over 18 years of age.
Therefore, the concession of lotteries and public lottery services in the State of São Paulo is part of the 13 auctions that the Government will hold until the end of 2024. In total, 24 projects are qualified, and the portfolio exceeds R$245 billion.
So, with the public hearings stage completed, the next step is the publication of the notice, scheduled for the next few months.
This initiative marks an important step in the use of lotteries to finance essential sectors for the population, such as Health. The objective is to reduce social vulnerability and guarantee better care for everyone.
