THE BIG DEBATE SEASON 10 EPISODE 6 | HEALTH

Vote on our poll: https://khetha.org.za/tasks/BD-6/

Over a million babies are born in our public health facilities each year. Four million people receive anti-retrovirals, in the largest HIV treatment programme in the world. 300,000 are treated for TB. No mean feat.

But before you celebrate, a reality check. Many hospitals are in a shocking state. Six times more women die in childbirth in South Africa than in other similar countries. Claims of medical negligence are skyrocketing. The total value of claims in the Eastern Cape alone is equal to 3 times the province’s annual health budget.

Perhaps you count yourself lucky to have private health insurance? But private health costs 5 times more than the public system, and money is wasted. The company that owns your health insurer may also own the hospital that treats you. A convenient setup for pushing up profits. Many drug companies also profit from our misery.

Should all South Africans be under a National Health Insurance scheme, where costs are controlled and we pay according to what we earn? If so, how can we ensure the government won’t loot our money and run our hospitals into the ground?

In short, HOW can we provide quality affordable healthcare to all South Africans?