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NHI Bill still on track: Motsoaledi

NHI Bill
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Health minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says the National Health Insurance Bill (NHI) is still on track, but implementation could take several years.

The NHI will be the first standardised system to govern both state and private health care in the country.

Motsoaledi addressed the University of Stellenbosch Business School in Cape Town on Thursday on the outlook, reasons and progress of the Bill.

Will a single universal health care system means better services for all South Africans? that was the question posed to the minister. Motsoaledi says the NHI should have been implemented many years ago and will make a great difference to the majority of South Africans who cannot afford extremely expensive private health care.

Public input closed in September and has been incorporated into the Bill.

“It was going to the cabinet committee yesterday. Unfortunately the president was out of the country and I’m sure you have heard he said this is so important and so big. It is now controlled in the presidency rather than the department of health and president said he can’t allow it to go through any cabinet committee in his absence so we are waiting for a new date.  After that once it goes through the cabinet committee then it gets approved by cabinet, then it goes to parliament then it’s out of my hands because parliament processes are not controlled by me,” says Motsoaledi.

Motsoaledi says it would be impossible to determine what the NHI would cost as there are too many variables that change too frequently. But he says there would be no need for public medical schemes as government employees, for example, will be integrated into the NHI.

Recently the Health Market Inquiry lead by Judge Sandile Ngcobo, released its findings. It recommended, among others, the regulation of the private health care sector.

Experts view the inquiry as a very good starting point. Dr. Boshoff Steenekamp says, “We don’t all like everything that’s been said in the market enquiry, some of it is controversial, but it’s been a very robust and transparent process that has been followed. Each report for instance was done with first a draft report, an opportunity to first comment on it, a day to be submitted, we had opportunities to engage with the panel members on the different issues which we disagreed with.  And so I think it’s been interactive and a robust process which I think will be hard to fault.”

Boshoff, however, says the inquiry only focuses on the private sector and does not fully address the challenge of universal health coverage.

He says various plans need to be properly integrated.

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