The Hospital Association of South Africa Chief Executive Office, Dr Dumisani Bomela, spoke at the recent SAMED Conference as a panel member alongside the Acting Director General of the National Department of Health. As might be expected, the discussion included perspective on the National Health Insurance (NHI) and the related Bill which is currently under scrutiny at the Parliamentary Health Portfolio Committee.

Dr Bomela raised a number of issues in the current architecture of the Bill and the proposed step in health reform, among them he pointed to the fiscal vulnerability of the proposed funding mechanism, namely that the country may end with all its health financing eggs in one basket and therefore is highly susceptible to global financial shifts and shocks.

Medbrief Africa covered the conference and published a comprehensive summary of the views expressed by Dr Bomela.