Nehawu warns private healthcare not to interfere with NHI
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) has warned the private healthcare sector not to interfere with the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI).
The union's December Mavuso believes a lack of regulation has allowed the three major private healthcare companies, Netcare, Life Healthcare and Mediclinic, to monopolise the sector.
"We are willing to intensify our fight against your monopoly triangle if you try to undermine NHI," he said at a Nehawu picket outside Netcare’s offices in Sandton on Friday.
The Competition Commission' recent Healthcare Market Inquiry report showed that Netcare, Life Healthcare and Mediclinic dominate the private hospital market and commanded 86.9% of admissions in 2016.
Nehawu has also called for a thorough investigation into the private healthcare industry, with the report also revealing South Africans are paying more for less.
"So, we can promise Netcare and other members of this monopoly triangle, we are going to fight for a thorough investigation of the prevailing business practices in the private health industry," said Mavuso.
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