Brazil
Health & Medical Emergencies
Last verified August 15, 2026
Written for U.S. passport holders
Emergency Numbers
- Dial 192 for SAMU (Serviço de Atendimento Móvel de Urgência), Brazil's ambulance service. Police is 190 and fire is 193, all separate numbers.
- All three are toll-free and staffed 24/7, reachable from any phone.
- For U.S. consular emergency assistance (a detained or hospitalized American, coordinating care, notifying family), call the State Department's Overseas Citizens Services from anywhere in the world: +1-888-407-4747 (from the U.S. or Canada) or +1-202-501-4444 (from overseas). This is separate from the local emergency number and won't dispatch an ambulance itself, but it's the number that gets the U.S. government involved.
Getting Treated as a Foreigner
- SAMU is a public service under Brazil's national health system (SUS) and dispatches an ambulance regardless of your nationality or insurance status for a genuine emergency.
- Once you're at a hospital, though, expect private facilities (generally the better option for a foreign tourist, for speed and language) to request insurance verification or payment upfront for anything beyond immediate stabilization.
The Gotcha
192, 190, and 193 are three genuinely separate numbers here, not a single dispatcher who redirects you, so it's worth knowing 192 specifically gets you SAMU rather than police or fire showing up first. Save it under a name you'll actually remember in a panic, not just '192.'
Sources
This page was drafted from the primary sources below. Rules change, so check the linked page directly before relying on any of this.
- SAMU 192 (Ministério da Saúde, Brasil)
- Help Abroad (Overseas Citizens Services) (U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs)