Health Department spokesperson, Mondli Mvambi, tells OFM News a team of healthcare professionals will accompany Ntombela and Tsiu to Makeneng Village on Saturday, September 14, where they will screen and treat residents in the area for a variety of illnesses and conditions.

He says the services provided on the day will include screening of tuberculosis and cancer patients, follow-ups for patients with said conditions, as well as provision of spectacles and prosthetics.

According to Mvambi, the campaign is designed to implement a policy in the department named ‘Primary Health Care Re-engineering’ which in its essence attempts to bring primary healthcare services to the people. He says it is also associated with what is deemed to be the foreseeable introduction of the controversial National Health Insurance (NHI), by providing uninsured individuals with primary healthcare services.

The NHI Bill, which was introduced to parliament in August 2019 and signed off by the Health Minister, Zweli Mkhize, in July is expected to be fully implemented by 2026, to the concern of many. The NHI will be funded through payroll taxes for employees and employers, a surcharge on personal income tax, the reallocation of medical scheme tax credits to the fund, and general taxes.

OFM News