With half of South Africa’s health professionals catering exclusively to only 17% of the population on medical aid schemes, the entire setup is a crime against humanity and should be abolished.<\/p>\n
This is the view of president of the\u00a0SA Health Professions Council (SAHPC),\u00a0Dr Kgosi Letlape, who recently spoke to academics\u00a0and medical professionals\u00a0at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, according to The Mercury<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Letlape said that private healthcare in its current form cannot exists with government’s proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme, as the privileged few who had access to medical aid – including those in government who are subscribed to it – refuse to engage, saying “hands off my medical aid”.<\/p>\n According to The Mercury, Letlape said that universal healthcare in South Africa is possible, citing the health plan under apartheid which was “one of the best in the world”.<\/p>\n “South African whites had health for all. By 1967 they had a system that could give somebody a heart transplant for no payment. At the point of service, there were no deductibles, the doctor was on a salary and everyone could access health care,” he was quoted saying.<\/p>\n However, with the introduction of the Medical Schemes Act, most medical professionals moved over to the private sector, which only caters to an ‘elite’ 17% of the population.<\/p>\n This in turns means that the vast majority of the South African population are left without quality health care and are unable to realise their constitutional rights. It is a crime against humanity, Letlape said.<\/p>\n South Africa’s medical aid schemes are about to be rocked by massive changes as government pushes its NHI programme.<\/p>\n
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