Objective: A systematic review, focusing on the judicialisation of health regarding gaining access to medicines, was aimed at understanding the impact of lawsuits on the organisation of public health services.
Method: Original articles published between 2007 and 2011 in the pertinent national and international literature were analysed, resulting in 49,239 articles being found in Science Direct and BIREME databases. Results The survey indicated a predominance of literature from Brazil, mainly the southeast, as well as a study from Colombia.
Discussion: The aforementioned chronic disease-related claims involved diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. Forming part of specific Unified Healthcare System programmes highlighted the difficulty in gaining access to the appropriate medicine and consequent health judicialisation demonstrated the fragility of existing public policy.
Conclusion: It was concluded that the courts (despite being a strategy for ensuring access to medicine) were unable to deal with the current spate of lawsuits, thereby leading to disruption regarding the flow of public systems.