“The Right to Health is about people’s access to healthy food, clean water, decent sanitation, adequate housing/shelter, steady employment and proper health information. Because health is determined by so many factors outside the health services, we need to promote people’s understanding of the Social Determinants of Health as part of the campaign. The campaign must be led by civil society, including many sectors required for the health of communities.”
“PHM in South Africa (known as PHM-SA) first started meeting and organising in 2003. The Right to Health Campaign was officially launched in Cape Town in September 2007. There are around 320 people on the PHM-SA email list and 75 organisations have endorsed the campaign.”
“The goal of PHM-SA is to promote and work towards the achievement of health for all. We aim to do this through a process of awareness raising, capacity building and partnerships with other organisations and institutions, bringing together all those struggling to eradicate the current health inequalities experienced in South Africa. To achieve this it is vital to increase community participation in decision-making regarding health challenges at all levels. We promote a comprehensive public health care system and call for an effective response to the social determinants of health, such as socio economic inequalities and poor access to basic services.”
“PHM-SA puts out an occasional publication called Critical Health Perspectives, available for download off the PHM global and South African websites. We participate in local, national and international campaigns for social justice and equity, and undertake advocacy and public comment on current challenges facing South Africa's health and social system.”
http://www.phmovement.org/en/circles/183/page and http://asnahome.org/peopleshealth/
Joint statement by TAC and ALP on NHI: “National Health Insurance is necessary for equitable healthcare”:
http://www.tac.org.za/community/node/2558
TAC has extensive material on health and human rights. “TAC is serialising articles by Mark Heywood that look at issues of global health, politics, human rights and the law. The aim of the articles is to set in motion a discussion among TAC activists and supporters about the broader political and social context to campaign work on HIV.”
Health and the Inequality of Poverty: Towards a Right-based Convention on Global Health
http://www.tac.org.za/community/heywood
The SACP has not contested elections as a party in its own right but as a member of the Tri-partite Alliance: ANC, SACP and COSATU.
On the occasion of the 88th Anniversary of the SACP, the General Secretary, Comrade Blade Nzimande, said: (see http://www.sacp.org.za/main.php?include=docs/sp/2009/sp0802.html)
“During this anniversary we have already launched a programme of red forums whose aim is to deepen communist activism amongst the people. These include the following:
“Mobilisation of the workers and communities to effectively participate in the implementation of the five key priorities as contained in the ANC Manifesto - building a strong COSATU to create decent work; building local people's education committees for free, quality education for the poor; building health committees for implementation of the National Health Insurance; building street committees to fight crime; and building people's land committees for rural development and agrarian transformation
“Through these red forums we are also launching our campaign to organize and mobilize for the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI). The capitalist classes in the health sector, together with their lackeys and the media have already started a campaign to oppose the introduction of the NHI. The NHI aims to ensure universal access to affordable and quality health care for all, with the rich subsidizing the poor, and no up-front payment for health services. As part of this campaign to defend the NHI, the SACP further calls and will campaign for an end to the outsourcing of services in the public health system and for the return of all outsourced services into the hands of public health institutions.”
South African Communist Party on the “State of South Africa” and the need for “Radical Transformation of Health-Care”:
http://www.politicsweb.co.za/politicsweb/view/politicsweb/en/page71619?oid=143286&sn=Marketingweb+detail
“To achieve an NHI will require a major class struggle, there are massively funded private corporate interests that have already begun to unleash an anti-NHI campaign. Ensuring that there is the determination and capacity in the state to go ahead with the process of rolling out an NHI will need reinforcement through popular struggle - on the ideological and practical fronts. Health-care workers and professionals will need to play an active role.
The National Education Health and Allied Workers' Union (NEHAWU) held a special Central Executive Committee meeting on the 31 July 2009 following a four day National Political School held on the 27-30 July 2009. NEHAWU “Supports the introduction of the National Health Insurance scheme, the strengthening and revitalization of the primary health care and district health system as part of the overall transformation of healthcare system.”
http://www.politicsweb.co.za/politicsweb/view/politicsweb/en/page71619?oid=138492&sn=Marketingweb+detail
Slides used at the NEHAWU Political School to explain NHI are available from:
http://wikileaks.org/wiki/African_National_Congress_National_
Health_Insurance_plan_presentation_to_NEHAWU_political_school%2C_2009
The 10th COSATU National Congress was held in late September 2009. Resolutions on health were discussed and the final declaration was as follows:
“We are appalled by the state of health care in South Africa. Private health care continues to take the lion’s share of health resources while serving fewer than 20 percent of the population. This illustrates the inefficiency and wastage rampant in the private health care system. The push for profits in private health care is raising health care costs for ordinary workers that are members of medical schemes.
At the other end, is a poorly resourced and over-burdened public health care system, which caters for the poor. It is against this background that we will work hard to ensure the creation of a National Health Insurance Scheme. We however caution that the changes in the health care system should be sensitive to employment in the entire health system.”
http://www.cosatu.org.za/list.php?list=10th%20national%20congress
No new position papers or surveys available.
“At Nedlac, Government comes together with organised business, organised labour and organised community groupings on a national level to discuss and try to reach consensus on issues of social and economic policy. This is called "social dialogue". Nedlac's aim is to make economic decision-making more inclusive, to promote the goals of economic growth and social equity.”
Organised business has requested that National Health Insurance be placed on the Nedlac agenda.
http://www.nedlac.org.za/
No policy documents available but comments or descriptions of conference proceedings found in:
South African Medical Journal: http://www.samj.org.za/index.php/samj
Medical Chronicle: http://www.wilbury.co.za/mc_archive.html
The trade union Solidarity has produced a report on the nurse shortage in South Africa. “Nurse shortage in South Africa: Nurse/Patient ratios”, dated May 2009. Download from:
http://www.solidaritysa.co.za/Home/home.php or contact Solidarity at enquiries@solidariteit.co.za
http://www.hasa.co.za/
HASA Conference 2009: slides on Investigating Private Hospital Sector by Barry Childs
http://www.hasa.co.za/documents/detail/52/
The HASA Private Hospital Review 2009 contains the following research articles [can be downloaded from IMSA web-site]:
- National Health Insurance in SA
- Hospital Admission Rates in SA
- Private Hospital Capacity
- Extent of Cross-Subsidies in SA Healthcare System
- National Health Reference Price List
- Partnering Sectors
National Health Insurance – Finding a model to suit South Africa. Written by Heidi Kruger – Head of Corporate Communications, PCNS and FMU at the Board of Healthcare Funders. “The views expressed in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the BHF or its members”.
http://www.bhfglobal.com/national-health-insurance-%E2%80%93-finding-model-suit-south-africa
The Board of Healthcare Funders, following an industry meeting in March 2009, has prepared a formal position document on National Health Insurance.
“At an industry meeting convened recently by the Board of Healthcare Funders, medical schemes pledged their support for a National Health Insurance in South Africa and the commitment by government to provide comprehensive healthcare to all South Africans. In a document compiled from deliberations at the meeting, medical schemes state their position on various aspects of the implementation of a NHI system”. [Download full document from IMSA web-site]
See also the press release: http://www.bhfglobal.com/files/bhf/Member%20schemes'%20official%20position%20on%20NHI.doc
The BHF Conference held from 30 August 2009 focused extensively on NHI. Presentations are available from http://www.health-e.org.za/health/category_list.php?uid=73 and http://www.bhfglobal.com/bhf-conference-papers-and-presentations-2009-0
HSRC Policy Action Network (P>AN)“The P>AN has a website that seeks to support the South African policy community by providing resources on policy-related issues in a range of thematic areas: the developmental state, gender, health, poverty, social & economic policy, social innovation and social protection.”
Health section: http://www.pan.org.za/health.html
No update on the ROADMAP process as yet.
Towards Quality Health Care for All. FMF Feature Article / 10 February 2009. By Eustace Davie
http://www.freemarketfoundation.com/ShowArticle.asp?ArticleType=Issue&ArticleId=2550
FinMark Trust is an independent trust established in March 2002 with funding from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID). The mission is summarised in the slogan: "Making Financial Markets Work for the Poor". http://www.finmark.org.za/index.aspx
FinMark Trust commissioned a discussion document entitled “Making health insurance work for the low-income market in South Africa: Cost drivers and strategies”. The report was released in August 2009 and is available on http://www.finmark.org.za/documents/HI_drivers.pdf
“This report presents the findings and conclusions of a study that identifies the main drivers of health insurance costs in South Africa, as well as strategies that can be used to reduce these costs, to support the inclusion of low-income earners.”
“The findings of this report suggest that a health insurance system can play a useful role in moving South Africa towards universal healthcare. In line with best international practice, the breadth of coverage offered by employer sponsored medical schemes could be expanded to incorporate a state sponsored component. This broader based pre-payment system can then be progressively coordinated with other sources of public and private funding in a coherent whole that ensures cover for all population groups. In this way, the valuable institutional capacity and healthcare services developed under the medical scheme and public sector systems can be used as building-blocks in meeting national objectives.”
“Health-e is a news agency that produces news and in-depth analysis for the print and electronic media. Our particular focus is HIV/AIDS, public health and issues regarding health policy and practice in South Africa.”
http://www.health-e.org.za/
Health-e partners are:
Health-e “will publish opinion pieces from various stakeholders and experts on National Health Insurance.” Articles include:
- SA healthcare in desperate need of reform – by Prof Gavin Mooney
- 'Why we need NHI now' - by Prof Di McIntyre
- Shisana on NHI – by Dr Olive Shisana
- Zweli Mkhize on the NHI – by Dr Zweli Mkhize
- NHI - What's wrong with this debate? – by Alex van den Heever
- Discovery - 'Bring the NHI debate into the public domain' – by Dr Jonny Broomberg
- NHI: The need for a value-driven, inclusive process – by Marthie Momberg
- Promises. Promises. Why the National Health Insurance plan needs hard numbers – by Prof Servaas van der Berg and Prof Heather McLeod
See http://www.health-e.org.za/health/category_list.php?uid=73
Amandla! is published by AIDC which “aims to strengthen the movement for social justice through the production of alternative knowledge and by enhancing the institutional capacity of Peoples’ Media Organisations and the communication capacity of progressive civil society organisations that facilitates a dialogue giving voice to the poor and marginalized locally and internationally.”
See “The NHI Debate” on the Amandla! web-site.
http://www.amandlapublishers.co.za/special-features/the-nhi-debate
