What direction will the new Minister of Health take?
We had planned to release a more complete report on the South African TB Conference in tangent with our coverage of the recent changes in South Africa’s government leaves many things up in the air. While appointment of new Minister of Health, Barbara Hogan has been widely hailed by activists, it is unclear what she will be able to accomplish before the next election, which will probably be held in April 2009. At present, she presides over a fractured department, with some elements loyal to the previous administration — and party unity may come before major policy changes. Furthermore, the minister, who has no professional medical background, will likely be guided by the TB experts in the ministry. It is important to recognise that there can be a clash of cultures between the conservative TB treating community — which often cleaves to time-tested if somewhat paternalistic medical approaches — and the HIV activist community, which is fostering the growing TB activist movement, and which
