The institutionality of the policy agenda against SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: a comparative study between Brazil and Portugal

Background The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic imposed challenges to researchers and governments in proposing political strategies to contain the transmission chain. Despite being an issue of global impact, the public policy strategies in fighting this pandemic depend on each country. This scenario demands studies to describe and explore these policies' institutionality. In this context, a question raises on how the biggest economies of the Portuguese language, Brazil and Portugal, have conducted the public policy agenda against the pandemic. Methods A comparative, qualitative, and descriptive study of the public policy agenda setting in Brazil and Portugal to fight against the pandemic was conducted through bibliographic and document research. The theoretical axis adopted was the Institutional Economy and the elaborations and management of public policy, mainly Douglas North, Geoffrey M. Hodgson, and Amatya Sen’s studies. Results The combat against the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was translated in a search for urgency analytical theories, elaboration, implementation, and evaluation of public policies in Brazil and Portugal. In both countries, social restriction strategies were adopted such as closing public places, stores, and schools. Also, some economic actions were established to mitigate these restrictions’ impacts, more limited in Brazil as a neoliberal picture of the current government. Conclusions The results pointed to differences and similarities in Portuguese and Brazilian agendas, especially with the virus transmission mitigating strategies and the social and economic assistance, being Brazil suffering from the negationism culture that promoted contagion and mortality acceleration.