- The National Health Insurance Bill was tabled in Parliament in 2019.
- Despite opposition to the bill, the Department of Health remains committed to launching the NHI.
- The ministry has suggested a handful of options for funding the model.
The National Health Insurance Bill has sparked angst among some South Africans who believe corruption and mismanagement are too widespread for the government to handle such an initiative.
Citizens have expressed these concerns in oral or written submissions at public hearings held across the country since late 2019.
Only 20% of submissions “unequivocally” supported passage of the bill, Vishal Brijlal, director of the Clinton Health Access Initiative, told City Press in May.
Despite this, the Department of Health has remained firm in its plans to launch the NHI.
The deputy director general responsible for NHI at the department, Dr Nicholas Crisp, said they hoped the parliamentary process would be concluded this year.
He said the NHI would ensure that everyone – regardless of socio-economic status – has access to reliable, quality health services.
We need to work together to make sure everyone gets the health care they need, when they need it, and without financial hardship. And that’s the definition of universal coverage.
Crisp also told News24 that the Department of Health does not want South Africans to be taxed more to fund the NHI.
At the end of March, the ministry tabled proposals on the method of financing INSA.
READ | INSA is growing, despite the refusal of opposition parties
In this explainer, News24 parliamentary reporter Jason Felix attempts to explain three of the suggestions presented – surtaxes on personal income tax, payroll taxes and the reallocation of funds for tax credits from the regime. medical.
“I have to say, we’re still quite a ways away from getting to some kind of universal health care or some kind of NHI for that matter,” Felix added.
