AfriForum before parliamentary committee: NHI will cripple SA healthcare
Today, at the public hearing on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill held in Johannesburg, AfriForum stated unequivocally that the introduction of this legislation will force South Africa’s healthcare system and economy to its knees. Today’s hearing forms part of the parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health’s hearings which are to be held in each province. The civil rights organisation made a presentation at the hearing to make its opposition to the introduction of the planned NHI heard. Unfortunately, the presentation was stopped after only two minutes, again highlighting the biased way in which the hearings are conducted.
On 19 September, AfriForum already demanded in a legal letter that the Gauteng Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Health and Wellness should immediately stop the public hearings on the draft law on NHI as it had come to the organisation’s attention that these hearings were taking place without the times or dates thereof being sufficiently advertised.
Louis Boshoff, AfriForum’s spokesperson for the NHI, made AfriForum’s presentation today. In this he elaborated on the negative consequences that the implementation of the NHI bill could have.
“The impact of this proposed law will have disastrous consequences for all South Africans. Its financing will lead to sky-high tax rates and medical experts will leave the country on a large scale to escape the state’s iron grip on the local health sector. Moreover, the NHI will not only hinder millions of South Africans’ access to medical care, it also has the potential to completely cripple the country’s economy – a crisis that will have a drastic impact on the lives of everyone in the country,” emphasises Boshoff.
“AfriForum intends to attend the public hearings across the country and thus oppose this destructive bill in every possible way. Civil society not only has a right to raise their voice at these hearings, but also has an indisputable responsibility to act in the interests of South Africans and highlight the dangers of this catastrophic bill,” says Boshoff.
AfriForum’s participation in the public hearing follows the organisation’s written comments submitted on 6 September. AfriForum’s opposition to NHI is supported by several experts in the economic and medical fields and takes into account the unique challenges of South Africa.
