The National Health Insurance Bill – Adopted by Portfolio Committee
The National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill [B11-19] has been adopted by Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health on 26 May 2023.
The portfolio committee has made a number of changes to the Bill, originally tabled in Parliament on 9 August 2019, and the changes are outlined in the portfolio committee’s amendment document which can be viewed here:
The latest version of the Bill, which include the portfolio committee amendments, can be viewed here:
As previously reported, the NHI is aimed at creating universal access to healthcare for all South Africans and is centred around the creation of an NHI Fund. This fund is intended to ensure that every person can access healthcare, regardless of their financial means or employment status. This means that healthcare will have to be provided free of charge at clinics, hospitals and private health practitioners.
The explanatory memorandum of the Bill states that the NHI will be implemented in six phases, and is intended to be fully implemented by 2026.
The next step is to refer the Bill to the National Assembly for adoption. Should the Bill be adopted it, will be referred to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) for concurrence, whereafter, it will be sent to the office of the President for enactment into law.
Members will be provided with more information on the Bill in due course.
