30 000 say #StopNHI in first week – IRR 

6 September 2019

The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) yesterday delivered to Parliament the names of 30 000 South Africans who support the Institute’s alternative proposal to solve South Africa’s healthcare crisis.

This is part of the IRR’s campaign to promote an alternative to the NHI proposal, which in its current format is unaffordable, and will lead to an exodus of health professionals, leading to reduced healthcare outcomes for all South Africans. This is along with the crisis in many government healthcare facilities – just last week there was a report about a baby who had accidentally been ‘cooked’ in a warmer at Mahikeng Provincial Hospital. The IRR has documented many of the failings in the public healthcare system, which can be accessed here.

“We will be coming to Parliament on a regular basis, until the 11 October 2019, to deliver the objections of South Africans to the NHI. We want to show politicians how little trust the public has in the ability of a government to provide quality healthcare for all South Africans, and we will be doing this on a regular basis”, says Marius Rood, Campaign Manager at the IRR.

The IRR’s solution calls for increased public-private partnerships, an end to cadre deployment, and strict accountability for poor performance. The IRR also calls for increased access to private healthcare through allowing low-cost medical schemes and primary health insurance. What should also be considered is the compulsory membership of medical schemes for all employed people. This would help spread the risk for private insurers, and people on lower incomes could have this subsidised by their employers, who would in turn receive a tax break. The use of vouchers should also be considered.

The IRR will also be making a submission to Parliament on NHI before the 11 October, which members of the public will also be invited to give their support to.

Issued by Marius Roodt, Campaign Manager, IRR, 6 September 2019