In a scathing column in Politics Web, William Saunderson-Meyer slams some of the practices of private medical schemes and what he described as their plundering of members’ funds.
He writes:
The CEO of one of our biggest medical schemes has warned that the sector is alienating customers with what looks like profiteering and catering for South Africa’s elites. As a result, the schemes unintentionally bolster support for the same National Health Insurance (NHI) that will put them out of business.
Bestmed CEO Leo Dlamini said this week that successive hefty rises in membership fees badly harm the medical aid sector’s reputation. They reinforce in the public mind the idea that the NHI is a cure-all for the nation’s healthcare issues.
“We run the risk of an industry that’s unaffordable. It is a real, long term concern. It doesn’t help the narrative against the NHI.”…..more
