The Association of Healthcare Funders of Zimbabwe (AHFoZ) has appealed to Parliament to reconsider amendments to the Medical Services Act, saying they undermine its members’ investments and violate property rights.
The association made the appeal on Monday when it appeared before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs at the New Parliament Building in Mt Hampden.
AHFoZ board chairperson Stanford Sisya told the committee, chaired by MP Eddison Zvobgo Jr, that two key amendments were of particular concern – the prohibition of medical aid societies from providing healthcare services, and the introduction of a risk-based capital model to enhance financial stability and supervision in the sector.
Sisya said barring medical aid societies from providing services would affect cost containment and the quality of care for members, and argued the amendments infringed on constitutional property rights.
“One of the things that we are expecting is that we should not have a prohibition of services for medical aid,” he said.
“We want to be in that space because for us it’s an issue of cost containment and protectability of the care that is expected for our members.”
He said the changes had also been overtaken by events following the establishment of the Insurance and Pensions Commission (IPEC) as the regulator for the sector, and that there was no longer a need to amend the Medical Services Act.
The association urged the committee to consider the constitutional and legal implications of the amendments.
More: The Herald
Leave a Reply Cancel reply