FOR millions of South Africans, private health cover is not a question of desire but of affordability. Health insurance costs are climbing inexorably, while the medical schemes market stagnates. Under pressure, consumers are downgrading their scheme options, delaying joining, or switching to cheaper health insurance. The demand for affordable cover is clear. Yet South Africa’s regulatory framework still bars medical…
Category: Archive
Every Health Matters article, newest first. Use the search or browse by month to find older reporting.
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Illicit Trade in Medicines and Cosmetics Tops R6.6bn a Year
Counterfeit cosmetics, unregistered skincare and grey-market medicines are flowing into South Africa in growing volumes. This raises safety concerns and exposes gaps in import controls. Illicit trade across the cosmetics, personal care and pharmaceutical sectors now exceeds R6.6bn a year. This is according to a new report from the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa and Econometrix. The report pins…
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WHO’s Africa Chief Urges Action, Not Talk, on Primary Healthcare
African governments must take greater ownership of their health systems and turn conference pledges into concrete action on financing and primary healthcare, the World Health Organisation’s regional director for Africa has said. Professor Mohamed Janabi told delegates that governments should lead health-sector development while partners align behind national priorities. He was speaking in Arusha at the International Conference on Primary…
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Unpaid specialist training strains SA doctors
Unpaid specialist training is becoming an increasingly visible feature of South Africa’s public health system as doctors compete for a limited number of funded training posts. Some local doctors are working without salaries for extended periods to gain the clinical experience required to qualify as specialists. Almost all of the clinical training required for specialisation and sub-specialisation takes place in…
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Discovery earnings growth strengthens
Discovery earnings growth strengthened in its latest financial year as investments in banking, health and international operations increasingly translated into profit and cash generation. The group reported a 17% increase in normalised operating profit to R17.75 billion. Cash conversion reached 85%, while the full-year dividend increased 33% to 384 cents per share. Discovery’s share price has also reflected growing investor…
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Childhood vaccination rates under review
Childhood vaccination rates published by the Department of Health may overstate the decline in immunisation coverage because of uncertainty about South Africa’s population estimates. The department recently warned of an immunisation crisis, saying more than a third of infants under one had received no vaccinations. However, it has since acknowledged that population figures supplied by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA)…
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Maternal Mortality: SA Off Track for 2030 Target
South Africa is not cutting maternal mortality fast enough to reach its 2030 goal, with the rate falling only about 1.5% a year, a specialist has warned. Dr Olivia Barigye, a foetal and maternal medicine specialist, said the latest confidential enquiry into maternal deaths shows the decline stalling, and even reversing slightly. She was speaking at the recent Women’s Health…
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Preventable Maternal Deaths Are a Failure of Equity
South Africa has a sophisticated economy, advanced medical training and a constitution that guarantees reproductive health care. Yet its maternal mortality ratio is rising, and most of these are preventable maternal deaths. The country recorded 111.7 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023, up from 109.6 in 2022 and 98.8 in 2019, before Covid-19. Foetal maternal medicine specialist Dr…
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FHC Targets Sterile Injectables Market After Activo Health Buy
Portuguese pharmaceutical group FHC will use its acquisition of Activo Health to build its African footprint, beginning with a push into South Africa’s sterile injectables market, senior executives said yesterday. The privately held group bought Activo Health from JSE-listed Afrocentric. FHC owns Laboratórios Basi, a drugmaker based in Mortágua, Portugal, which reported turnover of about €543m (roughly R10bn) in 2025.…
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Local Lenacapavir Production: Aspen Exits, Eyes Alimatravir
Aspen is giving up on local lenacapavir production because demand isn’t guaranteed. Instead, the company is supporting Merck’s alimatravir pill as a means of preventing HIV. Aspen Pharmacare has walked away from government plans to produce lenacapavir locally. This is the clearest sign yet that South Africa’s bid to make its own HIV prevention injection faces stiff commercial headwinds. Instead,…
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Discovery Group Results: Profit Climbs 17% to R17.75bn
Discovery Group results for the year to 30 June 2026 show normalised profit from operations up 17% to R17.75bn. This growth was driven by its South African businesses and the international Vitality operations. The group also lifted its final ordinary dividend 36% to 273 cents per share. Headline earnings rose 34% and normalised headline earnings 21%. Meanwhile, normalised return on…