Explaining the demand for private health care in South Africa

Abstract: This article investigates the determinants of demand for private health care in South Africa using the 2018 general household data to influence related policy interventions. The data reveal that approximately 75 per cent of households in South Africa prefer public healthcare facilities when they fall ill or when involved in an accident while only 24 per cent prefer private healthcare. Also, the results from the logistic regression analysis indicate that the factors significant in influencing the probability of demand for private health care were - race, gender, and age of the household head as well as the size of the household. The results generally revealed that public health is used by many households compared to private health care. In this view, the South African government needs to invest more in public health facilities as they are used more by the larger section of the population. Further, there is a need to ensure sustainable ways of reforming private healthcare, such as reviewing its cost to ensure that the disparities in access to these health facilities are addressed. This could also help in fighting inequality and poverty in the countr