Table 1 A brief overview of the SA private health sector compared to the public health sector [source: [20, 27,28,29,30]Â
| Â | Private Sector | Public Sector |
|---|---|---|
Components of the sector | Private health care providers Institutions that represent health providers Private health facilities (hospitals, laboratories) Funding mechanisms of private health services (medical schemes, life and short-term insurance) Traditional health practitioners | National Department of Health Nine provincial departments of health Three tiers of hospitals: tertiary, regional, district Primary health care system Local government responsible for preventive and promotive services |
Funding and coverage | 16% of population reliant on medical schemes which are voluntary private financing mechanisms Medical scheme coverage concentrated in top two income quintiles | 84% of population reliant on public sector which is funded through taxes and out-of-pocket payments |
Expenditure | Private sector expenditure in 2019 was 4.6% of GDP | Public sector expenditure in 2019 was 4.4% of GDP |
National health facilities | 225 acute hospitals More than 3/4 of private hospital beds owned by three large for-profit hospital groups (Mediclinic, Life Healthcare, and Netcare) Mainly located in major metropolitan areas | 257 district hospitals, 49 regional hospitals, 21 tertiary hospitals |
Doctor-to-patient ratio | 1 doctor for 429 to 571 patients in private healthcare | 1 doctor for 2Â 457 patients in public sector |