Ageing world brings health challenges
SA banks on economic growth to square the ominous arithmetic
The department of health is confident that SA's future economic growth will be robust enough to fund health care for an increasingly old population. But if the stubbornly high unemployment rate persists, it is unclear how a small tax base will fund not only National Health Insurance (NHI) but the additional costs associated with an ageing population. Many countries are feeling the strain on their health systems brought about by changing demographics that result in more elderly people and a smaller tax base of working younger people to support them. In Japan, the estimated population fell by 264,000 last year and deaths outnumbered births by an average of 1,000 a day, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This has had an impact on the labour force, which the IMF expects will plunge by almost 24-million people by 2050. Japan is a snapshot of what is coming for many other countries, including SA. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), by 2050 - just 26 years af...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.