16 Dec 2025

Serowe residents have proposed  enactment of National Health Insurance only after the public health sector has been revitalised.
This was brought to the fore during a consultative kgotla meeting on National Health Insurance in Serowe on Tuesday.
A resident, Mr Moses Monthe said public health was at its lowest, plagued by medicine shortages for both prevention and treatment, long delays in booking specialists, and lack of manpower, along with increasing incidents of cancer diagnosis.
Furthermore, Mr Monthe proposed that the health insurance policy should encompass all citizens and not separate individuals by class.
He was worried that classification would lead to the elites gaining more advantages while the disadvantaged received little support.
Mr Monthe suggested that funds from the plastic levy be directed to the National Health Insurance, as it produced significant revenue that could help in supporting citizens.
For his part, Serowe District Council chairperson,  Mr Atamelang Thaga recommended that the health insurance policy should allocate specific funds for cancer therapies.
He suggested that to meet the required number of doctors and specialists, government ought to evaluate the return on investment for students they had funded to undertake medical degrees.
Moreover, he proposed that the government should create a watertight formal agreement with those receiving sponsorships to enhance the return on investment.
A resident who preferred anonymity emphasised the importance of resolving all issues bedeviling the ministry prior to starting the implementation of the National Health Insurance policy.
Furthermore, suggestions were made that efforts should focus on research and partnerships related to indigenous knowledge and medicine, potentially resulting in the development of treatments for different ailments.
Earlier on,  Dr Keatlaretse Siamisang from the Ministry of Health  had challenged residents to express their views on potential improvements in the ministry, their preferences for health insurance development, anticipated benefits, and implementation strategies. ENDS