Legislators unite to condemn doctors’ demand for cash from medical aid patients

Mr. Speaker Sir, what it means is that medical care in Zimbabwe is very expensive.  It is very expensive to access medical care in Zimbabwe. Three or four weeks ago, when ZANU PF had their Million Men March, there was an accident at Mabvuku turn-off.  A number of women that were coming from Manicaland, I think they were going for the march because they were in ZANU PF regalia and were involved in an accident.  Three of them were injured and I happened, to get to the scene of the accident.  So, I took those three ladies to hospital and one of them was actually injured, I think she had spinal injuries.  She had a medical aid card, but was denied medical attention because I think it was Premier Service Medical Aid Society card.

Mr. Speaker Sir, when I left the hospital, I left my phone number that she could call me later. She said she was denied medical attention because they did not accept the medical aid card.  What it means is that, that lady probably contributes US$35 a month to Premier Service Medical Aid Society and she has probably been contributing for the past ten years; now she is ill, she needs medical attention for about US$250.  She is not able to access it and she dies sitting on the bench yet she has been contributing for the past ten years.  Here is one of the odd days that she has gone to seek medical attention and she is not able to get it.

Mr. Speaker, 1.2 million people are on medical aid but the announcement that has been made by the Zimbabwe Medical Association makes it sounds as if no Zimbabwean is then able to access medical attention without cash. We are now on our own and yet it is only 1.2 million people.  Of those 1.2 million people, I said 874 000 are on Premier Medical Aid.  They have their clinics and they are not affected by the announcement of Zimbabwe Medical Association.  So, it means it is only these other 400 000 people that are affected but in any case, the Zimbabwe Medical Association does not speak for all the doctors.  There are other general practitioners who are not even members of the Zimbabwe Medical Association because they are a voluntary organisation.

Premier Service Medical Aid Society gets all of its contribution from Government.  So, the prayer in this motion Mr. Speaker, is that the Minister immediately must intervene to correct the impasse which is between the medical association and medical aid societies.  In any case, the Minister’s response will be that – why should I intervene and speak to a voluntary organisation of 150 people which is trying to hold the nation to ransom?  That will be the Minister’s response and correctly so.

Mr. Speaker, other medical doctors have been phoning medical aid societies to say look, why cannot you just ignore what ZIMA is saying and continue as you were doing.  This is because when medical aid societies have contracts, they do not contract associations; they sign a contract with medical doctors as individuals.  So, medical doctor A goes to a medical society to sign a contract as an individual and medical doctor B goes to sign a contract as an individual.  They actually agree on the fees that are supposed to be paid as consultation.

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