At the moment there are many problems with undertakings i.e.

The largest chain of pharmacies in Durban does not accept undertakings and people must pay cash and get reimbursed, a long and sometimes unfruitful process.

Some disabled people have managed to get their pharmacy to accept the undertaking only to find the pharmacy is not paid and then they are refused medication unless they pay cash. pharmacies also complain of late payments.

Often even after paying cash for essential things i.e. disposable gloves and cleaning fluid for urine bags the RAF refuse to pay. They do not contact the disabled person and ask them what is the purpose of the purchase. This can take months and many phones calls and letters to sort out. My concern is disabled people without access to fax, phone and a post office.

Of more concern is the problem of disabled people in rural areas with possibly one pharmacy and if it refuses to lake an undertaking then that person may not have cash to pay up front.

Many GP"s and some specialists will not bill the RAF directly as in the past they have waited months to be paid. The disabled person again has to pay up front.

The largest anaesthetic practice in Durban charges MASA fees and also many of the specialists, the disabled person has no say in what is charged.

Many disabled people take the lump sum and either get additional qualifications or purchase a business to ensure they are financially stable for later years.

Monthly payments would mean that the disabled person is unable to move on with their life and that these finances would be used for day to day medical expenses.

Attendants are often not paid on time and then they incur bark charges for overdrawn accounts. The RAF changes its mind with regard to attendants and the salary paid.

Despite letters to the RAF handlers for large expenses i.e. to make alterations to a bathroom including plans and quote arid to ask if they have a preferred builder/plan etc. no response is forthcoming.

With cash payments for general damages the disabled person can decide how to invest this. The amendment makes no provision for interest/annual adjustments to allow for inflation.

What happens if the disabled person wants to emigrate, will the RAF still pay the accounts? In general the RAF do not administer the undertakings well and make life very difficult and confusing for disabled people. Occasionally there are handlers that go out of their way to be helpful.

The RAF does not seem to be coping at the moment with the work involved in the relatively few people that use their certificates never mind the huge administrative process involved in the new proposals.

Literate disabled people with continuous access to an attorney often have to go back to court when the RAF refuse to pay. The illiterate rural disabled person is at a total

disadvantage and this disadvantage will multiply if amendments are regulated.

The RAP agree on costs for transport and then change their mind. Handlers change frequently and lack of communication is a major problem.