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Claims backlog blamed on compensation legislation

University of Cape Town School of Health and Public Sciences professor Rodney Ehrlich discusses the transformation of the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act at the ten-year anniversary of the Asbestos Relief Trust at the University of Witwatersrand, in Johannesburg, last week. Camerawork: Nicholas Boyd. Editing: Darlene Creamer. Recorded: 17.09.2013

27th September 2013

By: Sashnee Moodley

Senior Deputy Editor Polity and Multimedia

  

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There is longstanding consensus that the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act (ODMWA) needs to be reformed, as it is underfunded and under- staffed, resulting in a massive backlog of current claims at the Compensation Commis-sioner for Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works (CCOD).

This is according to the University of Cape Town School of Health and Public Sciences professor Rodney Ehrlich, who spoke at the tenth anniversary of the Asbestos Relief Trust at the University of the Witwatersrand, in Johannesburg, last week.

He stated that, after 100 years, the ODMWA was in crisis.

According to the National Health Labor- atory Service’s National Institute for Occupa- tional Health, the Act provides compensation only for mineworkers and ex-mineworkers diagnosed with or suffering from occupational lung diseases. The compensation is administered by the Medical Bureau for Occupational Disease (MBOD), which falls under the Department of Health’s Chief Directorate: Noncommunicable Diseases.

The MBOD is responsible for providing medical examinations for mineworkers and ex-mineworkers if required. ODMWA provides postmortem benefits (through the National Institute for Occupational Health’s Pathology Section) if an occupational disease is diagnosed, regardless of whether it can be the eventual cause of death.

The ODMWA pays lump sum benefits based on the level of impairment and does not make any further pension provision. For compensation to be paid out the low-fence for lung-function loss is 35%. All medical expenses, including follow-up visits related to the treatment of the lung disease, is paid by the mine owner.

“Former mineworkers have poor access to medical examinations and claims processes. There is also pressure for the ODMWA to merge with the Compensation for Occu-pational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA), but this is opposed by industry because of the cost,” he said.

He stated that the purpose of compensation for mineworkers suffering from lung disease was to provide medical insurance and an income replacement during temporary incapa- city, as well as an income replacement for dependants in the case of permanent incapacity.

Ehrlich said a previous air-quality-based levy system ended in the 1990s and that levies were currently based on commodities, adding that it was unclear how these amounts were calculated.

Further, he noted that the MBOD and ODMWA were funded from general taxation.

He suggested the removal of the MBOD and the CCOD from the line function of the Ministry of Health to improve functionality.

Ehrlich believes that the mining industry should finance the MBOD under an indepen-dent board, the MBOD should be restaffed at competitive salaries and the epidemiological and surveillance functions of the MBOD and CCOD should be restored.

He stated that the CCOD should be handed over to assurance company Rand Mutual for claims processing.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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