Fraud‚ waste and abuse were just three types of corruption that occurred in the public and private healthcare sectors – and fraud in the private healthcare sector alone was estimated at R22bn each year. The Times reports that this is according to Special Investigating Unit head Andy Mothibi, as his unit convened a meeting in Pretoria to establish a forum that would focus on fighting corruption‚ fraud and waste in the healthcare sector.
The forum is part of the expanded Anti-Corruption Task Team (ACTT)‚ a multi-department team formed in 2009 to detect‚ investigate and prosecute alleged cases of corruption. The report says the ACTT’s mandate was expanded in 2014 to include other programmes‚ which included crime operations and intelligence and policy support.
Mothibi said the forum decided to concentrate on the health sector among the most vulnerable sectors. Mothibi said estimates by the Board of Healthcare Funders of Southern Africa were that at least 7% of all medical aid claims in South Africa were fraudulent – and that the figure could be as high as 15%…..more