The government and the private sector have moved to establish an electronic prescribing platform that will make e-prescriptions easier for doctors. Gavin Steel, chief director at the Department of Health, said prescribing drugs electronically would revolutionise access in private and public health. At a Board of Healthcare Funders conference in Cape Town, which ended on Wednesday, local and international experts discussed the case for universal healthcare and how it could be implemented. The conversation is particularly relevant in SA, with Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi having recently published the white paper on National Health Insurance (NHI). Steel told the conference leveraging technology was a critical part of rolling out NHI. The Department of Health has in recent months gazetted measures aimed at phasing in e-prescriptions and other changes in how medicines are dispensed, "but not much commentary has been made on it". The Essential Medicines Control Act requires that all ...
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