AN UNHEALTHY STATE OF AFFAIRS
The reasoning behind the government’s proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme is sound: medical treatment and care of an acceptable standard is becoming more and more beyond the reach of the average citizen. The private medical industry, including the medical schemes (despite their protests against rising medical costs), is a self-reinforcing clique. Service providers keep upping their fees, to unreasonable levels in many instances, and in response the medical schemes keep upping contribution levels (well above the inflation rate) while reducing or limiting the benefits available to members. This is resulting in a steady decline in membership across medical schemes. Turning to the public health system, we won't even go there – the decline in standards over the past two decades beggars belief. The major problem with NHI is not what it…