PURPOSE: To characterize legislation related to vocal health published in National Territory until the year of 2006. METHODS: A documentation search was carried out in official websites. In addition, a questionnaire developed by the authors was distributed by e-mail to Speech Therapists so that the greatest possible number of laws was gathered. The 22 documents obtained were analyzed considering their area-inclusion radius, proposed actions and their natures, target population, public offices involved, initiative and law promulgation. An absolute (numerical) and a relative (percentage) analysis were carried out. RESULTS: The documents found are mainly state laws, mostly from the Southeast region, proposed by the Legislative branch. Their feasibility lies within partnerships of State health and education offices. In general, the proposals proclaim the implementation of preventive assistance models through annual theoretical and practical classes (90.91%) ministered by Speech Therapists, with exception of those teachers with vocal disorders, who will have access to speech therapy and/or medical treatment (77.27%). Only three documents (13.64%) go beyond the classes mentioned above, with the proposal of actions that span from health promotion to rehabilitation, including references to work environments. Two of them (9.09%) consider the rights of the working teachers. CONCLUSION: Given the great number of legislative houses in Brazil, there are few laws that aim towards teachers' health, especially regarding their voice. Moreover, to make sure that these laws are applied and implemented as vocal health programs, these initiatives should be proposed by the National Constitution, so that the necessary resources for their viability are guaranteed.
Faculty; Laws; Health promotion; Disease prevention; Health public policy; Legislation, health; Legislation
