Emergency care in Brazil is provided to a foreigner free of charge — the public system SUS is obliged to accept any person in the country, including a tourist without documents. But the quality and queues in SUS are a lottery, so insurance is needed: it gives access to private clinics. Insurance on entry is not required, nobody checks it.
Night pharmacies in Florianópolis (snapshot as of Aug 2026): Drogaria Catarinense, Rua Coronel Pedro Demoro, 1396, Estreito, (48) 3244-0270; Farmácia PreçoPopular, Rodovia Jornalista Maurício Sirotsky Sobrinho, 5567, Jurerê, (48) 3112-2409. The 24-hour status here is shown on the map, not confirmed by a responsible party — at night call first.
Dentists in Florianópolis, also snapshot as of Aug 2026: Mais Sorrir Odontologia, Rua Felipe Schmidt, 321, Centro; Odonto Esthetic, Rua Francisco Tolentino, 552, Centro; Clínica Amarante, Avenida Campeche, 1550, Campeche. Dentistry is almost entirely private; dental insurance is separate (plano odontológico).
SUS: the right to free care
The right to healthcare in Brazil is universal and extends to everyone who is physically present in the country. Basis — the Constitution, the Organic Health Law (Lei 8.080/1990: health is a “direito fundamental do ser humano”, art. 2, and “universalidade de acesso” in art. 7) and the Migration Law (Lei 13.445/2017). Its art. 4 VIII guarantees the migrant access to public healthcare “sem discriminação em razão da nacionalidade e da condição migratória”.
Practical consequences:
- In an emergency — a condition with severe suffering or threat to life — they will accept you even without documents.
- The only requirement for admission is identification of the person.
- This is free, including for tourists and people with irregular migratory status.
A caveat: the right to care is not the same as comfortable access. Public facilities can have multi-hour queues, staff rarely speak English, and scheduled treatment for a tourist there is unrealistic.
Private healthcare and insurance
For anything that does not pose an immediate threat to life, there is the private sector, which is strong in Brazil, especially in São Paulo.
Insurance is not required for entry, but it is recommended. What is important to check in the policy:
- coverage in Brazil without territorial exclusions
- coverage amount sufficient for hospitalization
- direct payment to the clinic, not reimbursement after the fact
- coverage of activities that are actually planned: surfing, diving, paragliding, trekking, motorcycle
- evacuation and repatriation
Emergency phone numbers
| Service | Number |
|---|---|
| Ambulance (SAMU) | 192 |
| Firefighters and rescuers | 193 |
| Military police | 190 |
| Federal highway police | 191 |
| Civil police | 197 |
| Civil defense (Defesa Civil): floods, landslides | 199 |
Calls to emergency numbers are free, this is an Anatel rule. From a mobile phone dialing 112 or 911 redirects to the military police.
Number 199 is often taken for a single emergency number, but it is Defesa Civil. For Santa Catarina it is needed during heavy rains and landslides.
Pharmacies
Pharmacy chains — Drogasil, Droga Raia, Pague Menos, Drogaria São Paulo. In large cities there are many 24-hour outlets. Many drugs that are prescription-only at home are sold freely here, but antibiotics are strictly by prescription (receita), this is controlled.
Bring a supply of your regular medications and a copy of the prescription. The names of active ingredients in Brazil may differ from familiar brand names.
24-hour pharmacies in Florianópolis, marked as such on the map, snapshot as of Aug 2026:
- Drogaria Catarinense — Rua Coronel Pedro Demoro, 1396, Estreito, (48) 3244-0270
- Farmácia PreçoPopular — Rodovia Jornalista Maurício Sirotsky Sobrinho, 5567, Jurerê, (48) 3112-2409
- Droga Raia e Saúde Vital — on the map without addresses, search by name
The 24-hour status here is a map listing, not a verified fact: the hours are entered by a volunteer, there is no person responsible for them. At night, call first; do not just turn up.
Dentists in Florianópolis
Dentistry in Brazil is almost entirely private: SUS covers emergency care and basic procedures, everything else is paid or covered by a separate dental insurance (plano odontológico), which is sold separately from medical insurance.
With addresses, snapshot as of Aug 2026:
| Clinic | Neighborhood | Address |
|---|---|---|
| Mais Sorrir Odontologia | Centro | Rua Felipe Schmidt, 321 |
| Consultório Gibran Guimarães | Centro | Rua Araújo Figueiredo, 119/1007 |
| Sorrir Clínica Odontológica | Centro | Avenida Prefeito Osmar Cunha, 505 |
| Odonto Esthetic | Centro | Rua Francisco Tolentino, 552 |
| Clínica Amarante | Campeche | Avenida Campeche, 1550 |
| Caroline Fabre Odontologia | Campeche | Avenida Campeche, 2791 |
How to check a dentist. Dentists have their own council — CRO (Conselho Regional de Odontologia), and registration in it is mandatory. The logic is the same as with gyms and veterinarians: check the entry in the council register, not the reviews.
Sources
- T3OpenStreetMap for Florianópolis (Overpass, area 3600296561): `amenity=pharmacy` marked 24-hour — 4 objects, two have a street; `amenity=dentist` — 25 objects, 12 have a street. © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbLopenstreetmap.org · other
- T2Analysis of foreigners' right to care in SUSjusbrasil.com.br · secondary source
- T1Lei nº 13.445/2017 — Migration Law, nondiscrimination in access to health careplanalto.gov.br · primary source
- T1Lei nº 8.080/1990 — Organic Health Law (SUS): health as a fundamental right, universal accessplanalto.gov.br · primary source
- T1Anatel — emergency and social service codes: 190, 191, 192, 193, 197, 199; calls to emergency numbers are freegov.br · primary source
- T1Ministério das Comunicações, 11 Sep 2026 — who to call in an emergency: 190, 191, 192, 193, 199gov.br · primary source
T1 — primary: law, agency site, price list. T2 — secondary: press, specialist sites. T3 — other.