In Brazil, fibromyalgia has finally obtained recognition which for millions of people means a very concrete thing: to stop being invisible. With the entry into force of the new law, the disease can be officially considered a disability from a legal point of view, if it seriously affects daily and working life.
It is not an automatic label, but a real possibility, assessed on a case-by-case basis by medical and psychosocial teams. A historic step for a pathology that for years, everywhere, has been minimised, questioned or dismissed as “subjective pain”.
The rule was renamed “Gaga law“because the star himself had the courage to publicly talk about his fibromyalgia, explaining how disabling it can be even for a famous, rich person with good access to high-level care. His words had an enormous impact, helping to break the silence on a disease that is often underestimated and little understood, especially when it affects women.
What is fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is not “just” pain. It is widespread chronic pain, tiredness that does not go away even after rest, sleep disorders, difficulty concentrating, muscle stiffness, headaches, that feeling of mental fog that makes it tiring to even think clearly. It is a condition that changes day by day and can worsen with stress, cold or physical exertion. And precisely because of this unstable and complex nature, it has often been questioned, as if it were not “objective” enough to be taken seriously.
In Brazil today, if a person with fibromyalgia demonstrates that the syndrome significantly compromises their autonomy, they can access concrete rights: economic subsidies, tax breaks, job placement quotas, the possibility of early retirement due to disability. It is not an automatism, but a recognition of reality: for many people fibromyalgia is not just a diagnosis, it is a daily barrier.
And in Italy?
Here the road is still all uphill. Fibromyalgia is not included in the ministerial tables of disabling diseases and is not included in the Essential Levels of Assistance. This means that, at a national level, there is no uniform recognition or guaranteed access to specific treatments, exemptions or protections. In recent years, Parliament has discussed various legislative proposals to recognize it as a chronic and disabling disease, but none have yet reached the finish line. Everything remains suspended, in a gray area that weighs especially on those who experience the disease first-hand.
However, something is moving from below. Some Regions have begun to fill the national regulatory gap. Campania, for example, has approved a text that recognizes fibromyalgia as a chronic and disabling disease, providing specific diagnostic paths and forms of health and social support. It is an important step, but fragmented: today the rights of people with fibromyalgia still depend too much on where they live.
