The recent decision of the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) to allow for the dispensing of ivermectin, an anti-parasitic medication authorised for veterinary use, is a study in the law of unintended consequences. These consequences stem from misdirected lobbying for ivermectin’s use in patients with Covid-19 intersecting with the serialised weak governance that we have all become quite accustomed to.
The management of SAHPRA largely comprises some of our finest scientific and medicines regulation policy experts, who practice a vital and, for the most part, globally recognised regulatory function. Given its vital role in ensuring the safety and efficacy of medicines in the country, we can all take comfort from its imprimatur on the medicines we consume. That is as it should be and it is to the credit of those in its management, from the board to the executive, that they enjoy the confidence of the country in this task, despite the well-known constraints of inadequat
After the family ran up big bills in their first year as members, Profmed said they had failed to disclose prior conditions and would have to pay themselves. The high court disagreed.
Covid-19 vaccinations: medical schemes ready to pay for their members Ina Opperman Private providers will have to be accredited to administer the vaccines.
South African medical schemes have finalised their plans to assist their members to get vaccinated against Covid-19, after the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) released a media statement on 5 January confirming that it is driving public-private sector collaborations to ensure equitable access to the vaccine.
Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize identified the vaccine as a prescribed minimum benefit (PMB), which means that the Covid-19 vaccine will be regarded as PMB level of care, and will be funded in full by medical schemes, regardless of the member’s option or available benefits, when it becomes available.
New data shows a huge jump in retained money as medical aid schemes' spending slowed in 2020 – more money than is now budgeted to complete the coronavirus vaccine drive.
Black medical practitioners have welcomed a high-level report that acknowledges their unfair treatment by top medical aids, and have called for the system to be urgently rectified.