News
Gauteng Health targets R4.6bn in unpaid fees
23 Mar 2026
The Gauteng Health system is tightening its grip on unpaid fees amounting to about R4.6bn, reported Independent Online (22 March 2026).
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HPV vaccination programme for schools shows great success
20 Mar 2026
V vaccination programme is showing strong real-world success, significantly reducing infections with high-risk HPV-16 and HPV-18 strains among teenage girls.
Research from Wits University found over an 80% drop in these strains in vaccinated girls compared with unvaccinated peers.
The school-based initiative, launched in 2014, protects girls before sexual debut and remains effective even among those who later acquire HIV. The findings support continued investment in vaccination and suggest even greater benefits could come from adopting broader-coverage vaccines in future. – Business Day (20 March 2026)
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Medical scheme audits ‘traumatise’ physiotherapists
20 Mar 2026
Physiotherapists say medical scheme forensic audits are leaving them “fearful, stigmatised and traumatised”, according to new research from the University of Pretoria (UP). – Times LIVE (19 March 2026).
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Children go hungry while millions aren’t spent
20 Mar 2026
“In 2024, R197m was budgeted for the Department of Basic Education’s implementation of a pilot nutrition programme for early childhood development (ECD) centres, going up to R336m the following financial year,” reported Daily Maverick (20 March 2026).
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Momentum Bonitas deal lifts market share to 30%
20 Mar 2026
On 19 March Bloomberg reported: “The Momentum Bonitas deal is set to reshape SA’s tightly concentrated medical scheme administration market after Momentum Health won the tender to administer the Bonitas Medical Fund. The transfer takes effect on 1 June 2026 and is being positioned by Momentum as a springboard for further growth in a sector dominated by a handful of large players.”
Momentum’s share of the medical scheme administ
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Bonitas-Medscheme row threatens jobs
19 Mar 2026
The dispute between Medscheme and Bonitas Medical Fund could place up to 5 000 jobs at risk, according to Paul Hanratty, CEO of Sanlam. Sanlam owns Medscheme through its majority stake of 60 % in AfroCentric. While Hanratty described the conflict as financially manageable, he warned of severe human consequences if Medscheme loses its Bonitas contract, which accounts for about 40% of its revenue. – MedicalBrief (19 March 2026)
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AI-driven prompts to help detect serious illness
19 Mar 2026
According to Discovery AI-driven health prompts are helping clients detect serious illnesses earlier, particularly cancer. – Business Day (18 March 2026)
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Patent expiry for semaglutide to result in cheaper generics
19 Mar 2026
India is set for a major shift as the patent on semaglutide—used in Ozempic and Wegovy by Novo Nordisk- expires on 20 March 2026. - BBC (19 March 2026)
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TrakCare outage exposes backup power gaps at NHLS
19 Mar 2026
SA’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) reported a major disruption to TrakCare, its information system, leaving clinicians unable to access patient results and affecting care nationwide. – Daily Maverick (18 March 2026)
The disruption also caused delays in specimen registration and testing disrupted clinical decisions, especially in emergencies. The incident revived concerns about system resilience following a 2024 cyberattack.
The outage, linked to power failures at its Johannesburg headquarters, highlighted the absence of adequate backup systems.
Authorities confirmed it was not a cybersecurity breach, and data integrity remains intact.
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Parmed Membership: MPs Push to End Compulsory Cover
19 Mar 2026
The debate over perks for politicians has shifted to medical medical shemes, with ActionSA MP Kgosi Letlape campaigning to end compulsory membership of the Parmed Medical Scheme for MPs, arguing for choice and affordability, reported - Business Day (19 March 2026)
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Removal of medical tax credits on the cards
17 Oct 2025
“With significant legal and logistical uncertainty still surrounding the NHI's implementation, making precipitous changes to the tax system could have unforeseen and damaging consequences for millions of South Africans.” - Business Day(17 October 2025)
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Pharma faces billions in costs due to new tariffs
29 Jul 2025
“The pharmaceutical industry is bracing for a significant financial blow, with analysts forecasting costs of between $13bn and $19bn following the revelation that a new transatlantic trade deal will subject branded medicines to a hefty 15% tariff.” – Reuters (28 July 2025)
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Life Healthcare backs collaboration to tackle healthcare crisis
27 Nov 2024
Life Healthcare CEO Peter Wharton-Hood has backed a call for greater collaboration between the government and private healthcare providers to address South Africa’s pressing healthcare challenges. This follows a proposal by Netcare CEO Richard Friedland, who suggested adding healthcare as the fourth pillar in an existing government-business partnership focused on revitalising the economy.
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Discovery Life claims back to pre-Covid levels
19 Apr 2024
“Discovery Life distributed R10.3bn to its clients, a decrease from the R11bn paid the previous year,” reported Business Day (19April 2024)
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Hundreds of websites found selling fake weight-loss drugs
16 Apr 2024
Reuters reported on 15 April that the cybersecurity company BrandShield has shut down over 250 websites selling counterfeit versions of popular drugs used for weight loss and diabetes treatment within the GLP-1 class.
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