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ANC and its ministers reject reports of NHI ‘concessions’

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, InFocus, Latest, NHI

Recent media reports over the future of NHI have been contradictory and hard to make sense of. Chris Bateman chased up those in a position to know where things stand – it seems the ANC has not in fact made any major concessions on NHI. There is however agreement that medical schemes won’t be phased out in the next few years, something that likely wouldn’t have happened in any case given the poor state of the economy and the long timeline for NHI implementation.

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Which of the breakthrough weight loss medicines can you get in SA?

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, InFocus, Latest, Spotlight

The remarkable efficacy of new diabetes and weight loss medicines like Ozempic and Mounjaro have been one of the biggest health stories of recent years. Despite rising rates of diabetes and obesity, access to these medicines remain limited in South Africa. Catherine Tomlinson asks which of the GLP-1 agonists are available here and at what price.

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Analysis: SA one of only two countries to meet TB research spending target in 2023

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, InFocus, Latest, Spotlight, TB

In 2023, tuberculosis was again the top infectious disease killer on the planet, having temporarily been overtaken by COVID-19. Even so, investment in TB research is far below what United Nations agencies estimate is needed. Catherine Tomlinson unpacks a new report on global TB research funding, zooming in on the situation in South Africa.

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#InTheSpotlight | Where are we in the search for an HIV cure?

Posted in: #InTheSpotlight, Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, HIV/AIDS, InFocus, Latest, Special Investigations, Spotlight

Highly effective treatments for HIV have existed since the mid-1990s. But while these treatments keep people healthy, we do not yet have a safe and scalable way to completely rid the body of the virus. In this Spotlight special briefing, Elri Voigt takes stock of where we are in the decades-long search for an HIV cure.

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Why including pregnant women in a TB study in SA was a big deal

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, InFocus, Latest, Spotlight, TB, TB

Pregnant women are typically excluded from clinical trials of new TB medicines. This has led to a lack of solid scientific evidence on how best to treat women who fall ill with TB while they are expecting. Tiyese Jeranji asked local TB experts about the problem and puts the spotlight on a recent study that broke the mould by opening its doors to pregnant women.

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Highrises, hellholes and healthcare – Hillbrow’s heritage story

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Gauteng, Healthcare system, Healthcare Workers, HIV/AIDS, InFocus, Latest, Provinces, Spotlight, TB

Hillbrow started out as Johannesburg’s first health hub in the late 1880s. It’s also been a suburb associated with pimps and prostitution, a middle finger to the Nationalist Party, and a key site of the HIV crisis. Today, it’s the forgotten flatlands of inner city decay … but in small pockets it stays true to its heritage of bringing healthcare to the city’s most overlooked.

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Efficacy of 6-monthly HIV prevention jab confirmed in second major study

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Focus, Healthcare system, HIV/AIDS, InFocus, Latest, Spotlight

In June, we heard what could be this year’s biggest HIV breakthrough: a twice-yearly injection can prevent HIV infection. Findings from a second large study of the jab has now confirmed that it works. Elri Voigt goes over the new findings and unpacks the licenses that are expected to facilitate the availability of generic versions of the jab in over a hundred countries, including South Africa.

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Nelson Mandela Bay clinics under siege as crime threatens healthcare

Posted in: Access to Medicines, Eastern Cape, Focus, Healthcare Workers, InFocus, Latest, Provinces, Spotlight

A series of robberies at healthcare facilities in the Eastern Cape has disrupted services, with patients sometimes left waiting outside while clinics limit the number of people allowed in. This follows the provincial health department spending over R700 million on security contracts in the past financial year, reports Luvuyo Mehlwana.

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