The Democratic Alliance’s Wilmot James says the Council for Medical Schemes is ‘not an extension of the executive’ and has no business creating national policy THE Democratic Alliance’s (DA’s) shadow health minister, Wilmot James, on Wednesday accused the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) of overstepping its mandate by getting involved in the development of the government’s policy on National Health Insurance (NHI)."You are not an extension of the executive. You have no business in formulating national policy. It is not your business," said Dr James.Describing the CMS as being a "supplicant to the minister of health", he added: "You are governed by statute and you have to stick to it. Your aligning of your objective with the NHI is premature and exceeds your authority (because) it is not law yet."The CMS is a statutory body established in terms of the Medical Schemes Act. It is charged with overseeing the medical schemes industry and safeguarding members’ interests.Dr Motsoaledi rel...

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