Question NW3533 to the Minister of Health
03 November 2015 - NW3533
Alberts, Mr ADW to ask the Minister of Health
(1)Whether patients who have no medical aid cover are required to make any additional payments, including administration fees when making use of State hospital services; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether patients such as Transmed members, who do have medical aid cover and who are required to make use of State hospitals, are required to make any additional payments, including administration fees, when making use of State hospital services; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) (a) how many patients in State hospitals have (i) died or (ii) been injured due to negligence or deliberate actions by the employees and/or management of State hospitals in each year from 1 January 1995 up to the latest specified date for which information is available and (b) what type of malpractices in State hospitals have brought about the most (i) deaths and (ii) injuries; (4) (a) how much compensation has been paid out in the specified period, (b) on what legal grounds were the payments made and (c) how many of the payments took place due to (i) court orders or (ii) settlement agreements; (5) what steps has he taken and will he take to reduce the number of deaths and injuries in State hospitals?
Reply:
- Cash-paying patients, i.e those with no medical aid are classified according to UPFS (Uniform Patient Fee Schedule).
Patients in H1 category paying nothing.
Patient in H2 paying part of the fee and patient in H3 category pay full hospital fees.
2. When a patient on medical aid utilises public health facilities, they are not required to pay only extra cash above what the medical aid pay for them.
3. Honourable Member, death of a patient due to a deliberate action by employees and/or management of state hospitals to me means murdering such a patient – that is what deliberate action will mean to me.
We have never had a report of such.
4. Since the various litigations are directed at provinces and not at the Minister, and payments are done by provinces, I am still collecting this data.
5. Honourable Member, it will to a long way for you to be a bit specific about the deaths you are referring to, in order to help me answer your question.
Number of deaths from what? HIV/AIDS? TB? Pneumonia? Diarrhoea? Diabetes, Stroke, Cancer? Hepatitis? Meningitis? Heart failure? Liver failure? Prematurity?
And what type of injuries – motor vehicle accidents? Gunshots wounds? Assault? Stab wounds? Burn wounds? What exactly?
END.