What aspects of argumentation do I find most challenging? Why? What did I learn about myself as a writer? What do I need to do in order to become better at formulating a good academic argument?
What I find most difficult is figuring out whether my premises is valid, because it is a new concept to me so I'm still trying to learn the skill. I learned that all my arguments should be supported by research so that it does not become an opinion-based argument. To formulate good academic arguments, I would just have to practice and implement the skills I have been taught.
Week 7 Reflection
This week was about health financing, a building block of health systems. Health finances are raised by health financing systems. A good health financing system raises adequate funds for health, that ensure people can use the needed services and are protected from financial catastrophe or impoverishment associated with having to pay for them. The health financing system has three functions collecting money, pooling money, and providing services.
There are three models for health financing. Model 1 is public for the public. Healthcare is provided and funded by the government, hospitals and clinics are owned by the government, and healthcare workers are employed by the government. Model 2 is Private to the public. Health care is provided by private individuals and hospitals and clinics are owned by the private sector and doctors are self-employed. People pay for health care either by cash or insurance. Model 3 is mixed funding. Money is raised by taxation or privately. The government then buys healthcare from private providers or provides healthcare through public institutions. South Africa uses models 1 (public) and 2(private). In South Africa, public healthcare sector money is divided by the national allocation of funds to provinces. The provinces then allocate money to local governments and local governments to health care institutions. Currently, the public and private healthcare sectors both have the same amount of money, but the public caters to 68% of the population, and the private sector 16% (16% are out of pocket).
The healthcare system in the public sector is of inadequate quality because there are not enough funds to take care of the number of people that it does. Model 3 (the national health insurance) could be more equitable and the quality of care can improve overall. There would be more funds to take care of the majority instead of the minority. Model 3 would only work if the public health sector shows that they are managing the money that is already there well. Model three requires great leadership and management of money otherwise it won’t work. Especially if there would still be private hospitals. People would be paying for NHI and private insurance.
Health Financing in South Africa is a complicated building block. There is mismanagement of funds and corruption which weakens the public health sector and makes it difficult to believe that giving more money would improve the situation. There is also an economic problem with the middle class shrinking and the financial burden increasing. The National Health Insurance Funds which plans to increase the personal tax even more would weaken the financial status of the people of South Africa. Is Model Three the best for health financing, yes. But is it the best for South Africa with the problem that it is currently facing, I would say no.
References:
The Health Policy Project, May 2016. ‘Health Financing Profile: South Africa’. Available at: https://www.healthpolicyproject.com/pubs/7887/SouthAfrica_HFP.pdfLinks to an external site. (Last accessed: 31 October 2022).
Naidoo, S., 2012. The South African national health insurance: A revolution in health-care delivery!. Journal of Public Health, 34(1), pp.149-150. Available at: https://academic.oup.com/jpubhealth/article/34/1/149/1557418Links to an external site. (Last accessed: 31 October 2022).
Parliament, National Assembly (2019) National Health Insurance Bill (B11-2019). Cape Town: Government Gazette No. 42598. Available at: https://www.gov.za/documents/national-health-insurance-bill-b-11-2019-6-aug-2019-0000Links to an external site. (Last accessed: 31 October 2022).
I have changed the typography to the requirements listed, however, it may not show well so I have attached the word document below.
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