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News Update
South Africans rush to receive LEN jab
More than 6 000 eligible people in Gauteng have already received the long-acting HIV prevention injection lenacapavir (LEN) since the phased rollout began on...
US and Tanzania ink $1.3bn five-year health pact
Tanzania has signed a memorandum of understanding with the United States that clinches an American investment of more than $1.3bn in the country’s health...
NEJM retracts pivotal data for Amgen’s controversial Tavneos
Pivotal data for Amgen’s Tavneos have been retracted from the New England Journal of Medicine, creating another obstacle for the beleaguered autoimmune drug, reports...
Nigerian hospital denies removing kidney during patient’s C-section
The management of Nigeria’s State Specialist Hospital, Gombe, has strongly denied allegations circulating on social media that its doctors unlawfully removed the kidney of...
Call for 'balanced' perceptions on vaping after major review
Researchers are calling for balanced perceptions so that vaping becomes less visible and less appealing to children while ensuring it remains an effective and...
Costly blow for public workers as GEMS proposed decrease rejected
The Government Employees Medical Scheme says its request for a lower increase in contributions has been rejected, with the expected and more acceptable 7.5%...
iDexis seeks legal advice after court halts compounding
Pretoria pharmacy iDexis has said it will be taking legal advice after the High Court order to stop producing weight-loss medicines containing semaglutide –...
More arrests likely in Medicare24 tender corruption case
None of the people already linked to the R288m SAPS Medicare24 tender corruption case has approached the state to negotiate a plea deal yet,...
More than 50 hospitals still headed by acting CEOs
The absence of permanent CEOs at state hospitals across South Africa is alarming, with Gauteng alone having 13 out of 37 facilities headed by...
Tobacco Bill lurches forward – with amendments possible
South Africa’s much stalled and controversial Bill that plans to enforce stringent regulations on tobacco use and the vaping industry is showing signs of...
Boys die after flu-like symptoms
A four-year-old boy from Verulam, outside Durban, died last week hours after being treated for a cough, said his mother, who is waiting for...
Health Ombud reports on probe into KZN doctors’ deaths
The findings of investigations into the deaths of several former medical staff from KwaZulu-Natal state hospitals were to be discussed this week at a...
Now Uganda has suspected Marburg case
Uganda, which is struggling to contain the threat of what is already the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record – centred in the neighbouring Democratic...
Thousands missed in Ebola contact tracing, warns Africa CDC
The Africa Centre for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) says that the majority of people testing positive for Ebola in the Democratic Republic of...
NHS maternity care failures led to deaths, harm to hundreds of mothers and babies
An inquiry into NHS England’s biggest ever maternity scandal has revealed that more than 500 mothers and babies came to harm or died because...
Hundreds charged in US multi-billion-dollar healthcare fraud crackdown
Nearly 500 people have been charged by the US Justice Department after a two-week healthcare fraud crackdown that officials say involved more than $6.5bn...
UN meeting renews commitment to end Aids by 2030
Last week’s United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/Aids concluded with an overwhelming majority of member states adopting a new political declaration and a reaffirmed...
Murder charge for parents after death of obese seven-year-old son
A Michigan couple whose seven-year-old son, weighing more than 115kg, died of heart disease have been charged with second-degree murder, torture and three counts...
Donald Trump rumoured to be on experimental obesity drug
Speculation is rife in the United States that President Donald Trump – who is allegedly being seen by 22 doctors – might be taking...
Remgro now official 100% owner of Mediclinic Holdings
Billionaire Johann Rupert’s South African investment vehicle, Remgro, has officially taken full control of Mediclinic Holdings’ Southern Africa business unit, signalling the end of...
India tightens cough syrup regulations
India’s Health Ministry has issued new regulations for over-the-counter syrup-based medicines – including cough mixture – which are now banned from sales without a...
Egyptian doctor arrested after exposing obstetric violence
Egyptian human rights groups have condemned the arrest of a former doctor – later released on bail – after she had posted testimony on...
'A matter of time' before Ebola arrives in SA, says expert
One of South Africa’s top infectious disease experts has warned that it’s simply “a matter of time” before an Ebola case is imported to...
Madlanga Inquiry evidence implicates Medicare24 boss in drug deals
WhatsApp chats, voice notes and video clips presented before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Monday revealed what appeared to be drug dealing between...
Novo wins round one to block compounded Ozempic by local pharmacy
South African pharmacy iDexis has been temporarily barred from distributing and marketing its compounded weight loss injectable pens, with the Gauteng High Court issuing...
Tembisa officials helped kingpin score R25m in two hours
Alleged Tembisa Hospital corruption kingpin Stefan Govindraju scooped a R25m payday in two and a half hours using a bunch of shell companies –...
Physiotherapists fail in medical schemes clawbacks case
In a blow for the profession after a five-year battle, the South African Society of Physiotherapy (SASP) has lost its bid to scrap legal...
GEMS plan risks members’ long-term interests – CMS
A plan by the Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS) for lower contributions – to accommodate union demands – is neither financially sound nor in...
Eastern Cape MEC, HoD ordered to pay wages or face arrest/fine
The Eastern Cape Department of Health has until Tuesday next week to comply with an order to pay the salaries of a group of...
Fake sick note scheme bust by SAPS
Two men who ran a thriving business selling fraudulent sick notes in KwaMashu, Durban, were arrested this week after a drug addict unwittingly tipped...
Special mental health unit built for Western Cape’s teenage girls
The Western Cape has spent millions designing and building a specialised inpatient ward for teenage girls battling severe mental health issues, reports IOL.
Lentegeur Hospital’s...
KZN pupil dies after two energy drinks
A Durban doctor has issued a warning about the dangers of energy drinks after the death of a 13-year-old pupil in KwaMashu last week....
Gauteng Health ‘crippling forensic pathology services’
The DA has slammed Gauteng Health’s apparent disregard for the concerns recently highlighted by provincial forensic pathology labs. In a statement, the party said that...
UK experts welcome new diabetes-delaying drug for NHS
A first-of-its-kind therapy that can delay type 1 diabetes for up to three years will soon be available across the UK, after the approval by the...
100 Romanian hospitals switch to pen and paper after cyber attack
A quick-thinking cyber security chief in Romania helped 100 national hospitals thwart efforts by hackers to completely infiltrate their systems but the attack, in...
Couple in IVF mix-up will keep ‘wrong’ baby
The American couple at the centre of an IVF mix-up will remain their six-month-old baby girl’s “permanent” parents after making a deal with her...
Turkish hospital makes history with eight-way liver transplant
Türkiye has become a global centre for liver transplantation, with the recent world-first eight-way cross-liver transplant sealing this reputation, said the country’s Health Minister...
US foot doctor sues state for millions after fraud charges
A leading US podiatric surgeon who would often appear in the news for his charitable gestures – he also ran a non-profit that provided...
Pretoria pharmacy denies infringing Novo Nordisk patent rights
A Gauteng High Court judge has reserved judgment in the case between Novo Nordisk and iDexis in which the pharmaceutical giant seeks to prevent...
Healthcare workers and patients under siege as extortion gangs target clinics
Violence and extortion are targeting the poorest and the most vulnerable communities in South Africa, choking access to clinics and medical care, and terrorising...