BHF believes that the recent debate around rebates and discounts on medical devices, surgicals and consumables has raised the deeper need for much greater transparency in the pricing of healthcare services and products in the private healthcare sector.
BHF calls for the private hospitals to engage fully in the National Health Reference Price List (NHRPL) process as envisaged in the new regulations shortly to be promulgated by the Minister of Health. This would lead to standardization of billing codes and their interpretation. It would also provide greater certainty to consumers as to what their medical schemes would pay on their behalf for services rendered by providers of healthcare services.
While Medi-Clinic and Life Health are not involved in the disputes around increases in the Net Acquisition Price of medical devices and materials, the issue of the Single Exit Price on inhalation gasses as required by the medicines pricing regulation applies to all hospitals.
BHF calls for greater transparency in the logistics fees (fees paid to distributors) on medicines supplied to private hospitals by pharmaceutical manufacturers.
We support the call for transparency across the entire private healthcare value chain.
Given the current state of affairs, we call upon Government to exercise its constitutional mandate to make quality healthcare accessible and affordable to South Africans.