The recent decision by Supreme Court Justice Nunes Marques has suspended every municipal law in Brazil that created or regulated municipal lotteries and fixed-odds betting directly impacted on Teresópolis' municipal hospital project.
The injunction immediately halts the operation of "Sorte Teresópolis," a program the municipality had positioned as the primary revenue source for constructing and maintaining its first municipal hospital.
The city had concluded the bidding process for the lottery in October, projecting more than BR700m ($131m) in revenue over a 20-year contract.
According to the municipal plan, 21.8% of the gross income would be channeled to local health services, including the municipal hospital, as well as also adding to the municipal pension fund and the local athletics programme.
A public panel on the façade of the future hospital site already informed residents that the project would be financed by lottery proceeds.
The suspension now throws the timeline of the Multi Hospital Municipal into uncertainty.
The project includes 60 beds, 20 ICU units and a surgical centre designed to ease pressure on existing facilities.
The municipality recently purchased the chosen building for BR1.9m and had planned to begin adaptation works in January 2026, aiming for completion by the end of the same year.
Justice Nunes Marques argued that lotteries do not constitute local interest and require uniform national regulation, making municipal authorizations unconstitutional.
He also stated that allowing cities to independently regulate betting risked creating a fragmented market and undermining federal oversight. Municipalities and companies that ignore the order face daily fines of BR500,000.
Teresópolis' administration said it will comply fully with the ruling and will await the Supreme Court's final judgment before issuing further comments.
Brazil's Senate committee recently approved a bill increasing the tax burden on licensed operators
