• Mixed public and private funding • Mixed eligibility based on means-testing of income: ○ General Medical Scheme (GMS) card holders (approx. 40 % of population) entitled to free medical visits but pay a small levy for dispensed medications ■ All those aged ≥70 years are automatically eligible GMS since August 2015 ○ Doctor visit card (DVC) holders are entitled to free GP visits but pay for prescriptions in full ○ Private patients pay in full for GP visits and dispensed medications • GPs must transcribe hospital prescriptions to GMS scripts for patients to receive prescription medication for free (subject to prescribing levy) • GPs are self-employed and are contracted by the State to provide services to certain populations (e.g. GMS card holders) • No national register of GPs but it is estimated that there are roughly 2,500 • Routine auditing of prescribing activity does not take place as it does in countries such as the UK, where most prescribers are supported by pharmaceutical advisors |