- ActionSA’s Initiative to End Healthcare Disparities: ActionSA has introduced the PARMED Amendment Bill to address the unequal healthcare benefits enjoyed by politicians versus ordinary South Africans, promoting fairness in the healthcare system.
- Abolishing Exclusive Medical Aid Schemes for Public Officials: The Bill proposes making PARMED membership voluntary, requiring public representatives to choose between private healthcare or using the same public facilities as citizens, thereby ending their exclusive privileges.
- Promoting Accountability and Fairness in Healthcare: By aligning the healthcare conditions of politicians with those of the general public, ActionSA aims to foster political accountability and motivate leaders to improve the country’s healthcare sector.
ActionSA has taken its first step toward ending what it calls “double standards” in South Africa’s healthcare system by gazetting the Parliamentary and Provincial Medical Aid Scheme (PARMED) Amendment Bill.
For decades, Members of Parliament, Ministers, and Judges have benefitted from an exclusive medical aid scheme that shields them from the collapsing and underfunded public healthcare system. Millions of ordinary South Africans, however, rely solely on overcrowded hospitals and clinics.
The Amendment Bill seeks to make PARMED membership voluntary. This would mean that public representatives are no longer forced into a special scheme and must choose whether to pay for private cover or use the same public facilities as the citizens they serve.
According to ActionSA, this step is about accountability and fairness. By ensuring that politicians and other public officials experience the same conditions as citizens, the party believes leaders will finally have the political will to address the country’s struggling healthcare sector.
The Bill is also positioned as part of ActionSA’s broader mission to strengthen the path toward Universal Health Coverage by breaking down privileges that separate leaders from ordinary South Africans.
