Photo by [Parliamentary Monitoring Group]
Dr Mvuyisi Mzukwa, Chairperson of the South African Medical Association (SAMA), expressed his disapproval of the National Health Insurance (NHI) initiative, alleging the ruling party is utilising it to gain political support in the upcoming election. SAMA, along with other political parties and healthcare practitioners, oppose the current version of the NHI Bill.
Last month, the National Assembly passed the NHI Bill through a majority vote, and it will now progress to the National Council of Provinces for further consideration.
The primary objective of the NHI is to achieve Universal Health Coverage for all South Africans, aiming to establish a single public health fund with sufficient resources to address the healthcare needs of the entire nation.
The NHI’s Current Limitation
According to Dr Mzukwa, SAMA does endorse the idea of a universal, fair, and affordable State Healthcare System. However, they harbour several concerns, including administrative handling, mismanagement of funds, and corruption within the public health sector.
Furthermore, their lack of support for the current form of the NHI stems from its exclusive focus as a financial scheme, neglecting other vital aspects or pillars of the healthcare system.
“The South African Medical Association is not supportive of the NHI in its current form because it leaves out crucial issues. First of all, it’s only a financial asset. It deals with finance; it does not talk about other pillars of the healthcare system [such as] leadership and governance, human resource for health, information systems, infrastructure and medicine.”
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Are National Healthcare Initiatives Not Feasible?
This leads to the pivotal question of how the NHI will receive its funding. The Health Department reveals, the Treasury is currently examining various funding proposals.
As with any government program, financing for health coverage under the NHI might involve taxes, surcharges, special levies, and contributions from South African citizens. However, it’s essential to consider that the country’s restricted tax base could increase tax burdens on its citizens.
“You are only talking about [a few] million players in South Africa who are going to be catering for all the millions in the country,” said Dr Mzukwa.
In the United Kingdom, the National Health Service (NHS), which bears similarities to the NHI, has encountered growing difficulties, with some even labelling it as broken or failing.
This perspective is shared by many who observe the NHI, suggesting that if a country like the UK is grappling with such challenges in its healthcare system, it is possible South Africa’s challenges could be even more severe. However, only time may tell.
