The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) is established in terms of the South African Medical Research Council Act, 1991 (Act No. 58 of 1991) (hereafter referred as the Act). SAMRC is a Schedule 3A public entity reporting to the Ministry of Health, and is mandated, through research, development and technology transfer, to promote the improvement of the health and quality of life of the population of the Republic, and to perform such functions as maybe assigned under the Act.
- COVID-19 emerged as a new threat to the global healthcare system and continues to have an incremental impact, both on the health of people and the economy.
- The National Research Foundation (NRF) has recently awarded Professor Rob Warren, Director of the SAMRC Centre for Tuberculosis Research (CTR) with an A1-rating, a grading which confirms him as a leading international scholar in his field.
- Parliament recently concluded public hearings on the National Health Insurance Bill. This article looks at concerns around coverage and access to healthcare to determine what insights the parliamentary committee on health could draw from them.
- As human rights month commemorations drew to an end, the SAMRC’s Gender and Health Research Unit (GHRU) held a webinar to shine a spotlight on the experiences of people with disabilities under the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa.