South Africa's healthcare system is "on the brink of collapse" according to the Board of Healthcare Funders which represents most medical aid schemes in the country.
This sounds an extreme view but at the very least it can be said that a combination of high fees and co-payment levels coupled with a fairly static pool of employed people who are able to access such schemes, means the market amongst providers and administrators is very competetive.
A recent project with a healthcare administrator showed that massive productivity gains and margin growth can be made despite the restrictions placed upon the organisation by both legislation and the need to deliver to strict service level agreements with the fund itself, on everything from the hold-time for a customer's telephone call through to treatment authorisation turnaround times.
More can be found on this project in the case study section of the site.
