READER LETTER | Cure ailing healthcare before implementing NHI

NHI has been touted by the government as the solution to health inequality in the country.
NHI has been touted by the government as the solution to health inequality in the country.
Image: 123RF/HXDBZXY

Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi says the opposition to National Health Insurance (NHI) is baffling. What is baffling is to have a government that assumes that a country with 32.1% unemployment rate can successfully implement and sustain universal healthcare coverage (UHC) when countries with a 3,5% unemployment rate are working very hard to deal with challenges facing their UHC services.

Why is it difficult for the premier to understand such a simple explanation which has been repeated over and over again? Another point Lesufi ignores is that many organisations and individuals have clearly stated that in principle, they all understand the need for UHC, but being reckless about its implementation will have dire consequences.

The government has, since 2018, ignored the need to fix all the areas that need fixing before implementation. Not a single attempt has been made to improve our ailing health services; a service that has for many years been deteriorating because of a woefully inadequate national health budget.

We've heard many horror stories for years expressing the degree of deterioration in the standard of health services in our country, and Lesufi talks about high quality care. Does he even know what that means? What quality healthcare is he talking about?

Should they be pushing for implementation now, when they are not even sure they will still be in power after the elections? Are they now setting up for failure whoever will win the elections? No premier, there can be no signing of NHI into law at this 11th hour. 

All state-owned enterprises have died under the watch of the ANC government, healthcare is too important to meet the same demise, it cannot be allowed.

Cometh Dube-Makholwa, Midrand


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