Mixed reactions as President sets to sign the NHI Bill into law
The NHI bill aims to establish a fund to purchase health services from both public and private providers.
Health Policy
Read More » Mixed reactions as President sets to sign the NHI Bill into law
Gauteng plans to introduce ‘Youth Centres’ to tackle teen pregnancy
Factors such as inadequate sexual education, socioeconomic challenges, and limited access to reproductive health services play significant roles in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the province.
SA child vaccination differs in public vs private sector: what this means
While public clinics offer free childhood vaccines, new parents may encounter a troubling reality: some crucial vaccines against childhood infections are unavailable in the public sector.
NHI is closer to being law, there are many concerns not addressed
South Africa is marching closer to implementing universal health coverage in the form of the National Health Insurance (NHI) Scheme. This is after the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) voted this week in favour of the implementation of the bill. The Western Cape is…
South Africa has great HIV laws, but they’re not being fully enforced
Policy is central to the global efforts to end AIDS. Progressive policies that enshrine civil liberties can help people take steps to protect themselves from acquiring HIV, and prevent its onward transmission. In the same breath, policies that criminalise people…
HIV among trans women is at crisis levels. Discrimination is fuelling the fire
By Chris Bateman, Freelance Journalist With HIV positivity among urban transgender women in South Africa estimated at 46%, it is becoming increasingly urgent for healthcare workers to undergo sensitivity training. A transgender woman is a person who was assigned the…
Children are a blind spot in South Africa’s HIV response
By Chris Bateman, Freelance Journalist Only two-thirds of children in South Africa getting treatment for HIV are virally suppressed. Viral suppression is a measure of how well antiretroviral (ARVs) drugs reduce HIV viral load. A high HIV viral load suggests…
TB drug price drop is a welcome relief as South Africa faces budget constrains
South Africa will now be paying 40% less for the multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) drug bedaquiline. Bedaquiline is a key component in the cocktail of drugs used to treat MDR-TB. Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is currently the sole manufacturer…
Community health workers deliver medication to elderly FS patients
The Free State health department recently launched a programme to have medication for chronic conditions delivered to elderly patients’ homes. Deliveries will be made by health assistants or community health workers. These are usually community members who are trained in…
PEPFAR’s continued funding is key for ending AIDS as public health threat
Top scientists, opinion leaders, civil society groups and politicians are calling on United States (US) policymakers to vote in favour of the continued funding for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The voting process – known as a…
Access to health services a major concern as Treasury mulls budget cuts
Academics, activists and medical professionals have rung the alarm bell over the further deterioration of South Africa’s public health services if stringent budget-cutting measures are implemented immediately. South Africa has been facing fiscal strain with increased interest rates and high…
Covid-19 vaccines: SA ‘bullied’ into unfair deals, charged over two times more than other countries
The COVID-19 procurement contracts South Africa signed with various pharmaceutical companies were “unethical, immoral, and imperial minded”, says Health Justice Initiative (HJI) director, Fatima Hassan. She says the contracts made no provision for transparency and government as the purchaser had…
Trained pharmacists can now prescribe ARVs and manage patients with HIV
Access to TB prevention treatment and antiretroviral (ARV) medication is about to get easier in South Africa. People will soon be able to get a range of HIV services from pharmacists with special training. South Africa’s HIV treatment programme is…
NHI: Medicine access inequality a concern
The Health Justice Initiative (HJI) says the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill provides no clarity on how medicine selection, procurement, pricing and access will be managed to ensure broad medicine access. HJI founder, Fatima Hassan says it’s unclear how the…
10 things you need to know about the NHI
Officials from the health department briefed the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on the National Health Insurance (NHI) today. The NHI aims to provide access to quality and affordable health services to meet patients’ healthcare needs. Last week, the National…