Today, at the public hearing on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill held in Johannesburg, AfriForum stated unequivocally that the introduction of this legislation will force South Africa\u2019s healthcare system and economy to its knees. Today\u2019s hearing forms part of the parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health\u2019s hearings which are to be held in each province. The civil rights organisation made a presentation at the hearing to make its opposition to the introduction of the planned NHI heard. Unfortunately, the presentation was stopped after only two minutes, again highlighting the biased way in which the hearings are conducted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On 19 September, AfriForum already demanded in a legal letter that the Gauteng Legislature\u2019s Portfolio Committee on Health and Wellness should immediately stop the public hearings on the draft law on NHI as it had come to the organisation\u2019s attention that these hearings were taking place without the times or dates thereof being sufficiently advertised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Louis Boshoff, AfriForum\u2019s spokesperson for the NHI, made AfriForum\u2019s presentation today. In this he elaborated on the negative consequences that the implementation of the NHI bill could have. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe impact of this proposed law will have disastrous consequences for all South Africans. Its financing will lead to sky-high tax rates and medical experts will leave the country on a large scale to escape the state\u2019s iron grip on the local health sector. Moreover, the NHI will not only hinder millions of South Africans\u2019 access to medical care, it also has the potential to completely cripple the country\u2019s economy \u2013 a crisis that will have a drastic impact on the lives of everyone in the country,\u201d emphasises Boshoff.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfriForum intends to attend the public hearings across the country and thus oppose this destructive bill in every possible way. Civil society not only has a right to raise their voice at these hearings, but also has an indisputable responsibility to act in the interests of South Africans and highlight the dangers of this catastrophic bill,\u201d says Boshoff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AfriForum\u2019s participation in the public hearing follows the organisation\u2019s written comments submitted on 6 September. AfriForum\u2019s opposition to NHI is supported by several experts in the economic and medical fields and takes into account the unique challenges of South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Today, at the public hearing on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill held in Johannesburg, AfriForum stated unequivocally that 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