The cost and appropriateness of health care technology in South Africa. A plea for the development of a local medical equipment industry.

Some of the main reasons for the increase in the cost of health care technology are summarized. Local problems in the health care delivery system are not being solved effectively by imported medical equipment. The expertise required for the local solution of problems is available in the RSA and should be developed further. A private-sector consortium with matching funding from the State should serve as a clearing house for developing and evaluating assessment criteria, promoting the use of existing cost-efficient medical technologies, and identifying obsolete and inappropriate ones. The formation of a local health care technology corporation should be considered seriously.