News
Gauteng fails to spend R784m allocated for cancer treatment
25 Apr 2024
In 2023 Treasury allocated R784m to outsource radiation oncology services and address surgical backlogs in Gauteng, reported Spotlight (25 April 2024).
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PMBs are ‘spiralling out of control’
25 Apr 2024
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“Despite good intentions, poorly designed and unchanged prescribed minimum benefits (PMBs) have spiralled out of control, resulting in high costs for funders and driving up medical inflation,” wrote Chris Bateman in Financial Mail (25 April 2024).
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SA’s ailing health departments
25 Apr 2024
Health Minister Joe Phaahla confirmed that, since January 2023, 47 corruption cases had been identified in SA health departments. - The Citizen (25 April 2024)
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SA’s ailing health departments
25 Apr 2024
Health Minister Joe Phaahla confirmed that, since January 2023, 47 corruption cases had been identified in SA health departments. - The Citizen (25 April 2024)
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PMBs are ‘spiralling out of control’
25 Apr 2024
“Despite good intentions, poorly designed and unchanged prescribed minimum benefits (PMBs) have spiralled out of control, resulting in high costs for funders and driving up medical inflation,” wrote Chris Bateman in Financial Mail (25 April 2024).
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Aspen to address short supply of obesity medicine
23 Apr 2024
Bloomberg reported on 22 April that, Africa’s largest drugmaker, Aspen, is prepared to alleviate the escalating shortage of the world’s most sought-after obesity treatments.
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WHO considers wider alert on contaminated cough syrup
22 Apr 2024
Reuters reported on 19 April that the World Health Organisation (WHO) might issue a broader warning about the Johnson&Johnson-made children’s cough syrup, which was found to be contaminated. This follows the Nigerian regulator’s recall of a batch of Benylin paediatric syrup after routine testing. The contaminant has been linked to the deaths of more than 300 children in Cameroon, Gambia, Indonesia and Uzbekistan since 2022.
However, no evidence exists that these incidents are related to the latest recalls.
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Discovery Life claims back to pre-Covid levels
19 Apr 2024
“Discovery Life distributed R10.3bn to its clients, a decrease from the R11bn paid the previous year,” reported Business Day (19April 2024)
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Hundreds of websites found selling fake weight-loss drugs
16 Apr 2024
Reuters reported on 15 April that the cybersecurity company BrandShield has shut down over 250 websites selling counterfeit versions of popular drugs used for weight loss and diabetes treatment within the GLP-1 class.
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RAF bid to appeal judgment on claim requirements
06 Dec 2023
On 5 December 2023 the Pretoria High Court rejected the Road Accident Fund’s (RAF) request to reconsider a previous verdict from November, reported Business Day.
“The ruling mandated eliminating the stringent new requirements for filing claims outlined in a 2021 board notice.”
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Covid-19 vaccines: ‘Health Department squandered the opportunity’
07 Sep 2023
“Health activists are right to draw attention to this grossly unfair situation. (Covid-19 vaccine deals) But the far bigger scandal is that the Health Department squandered the opportunity after spending an estimated R14-bn on Covid-19 jabs and belatedly filling its warehouses with enough doses to vaccinate the nation” – Business Day (7 September 2023).
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EDITORIAL: Health Minister must halt care crisis
20 Jan 2023
NHI, the government’s plan for universal health coverage, rests heavily on nurse-led care. Yet where these nurses will come from is a mystery. – Editorial (
Business Day 20 January 2023).
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Study raises concerns about quality of hospital meals
12 Jan 2023
According to a study of meals served at Cape Town hospitals the food served to hospital patients are way below the health department “ration scale” and patients’ energy requirements, reported
Financial Mail (12 January 2023).
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Health Minister’s comment provides ‘some comfort to medical scheme industry’
15 Jun 2022
Health Minister Joe Phaahla’s comment that NHI will be implemented step-by-step - gradually phasing out the role of medical schemes in the private sector - should provide some comfort to these private healthcare services, according to Business Day (15 June 2022)
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Activists demands change in intellectual property laws
10 Nov 2021
Activists from Fix the Patent Laws Campaign (FTPL) urged government to change intellectual property laws to allow more people to access lifesaving medicine for serious ailments such as cancer, HIV, Covid, tuberculosis, mental health and diabetes.
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