The Competition Commission will proceed with its inquiry into private healthcare costs - despite litigation instigated by Netcare preventing the inquiry from starting on its originally scheduled date, January 6.
Private hospitals group Netcare took KPMG to court after the consultancy was hired to give technical support to the commission.
Netcare argued that there was a conflict of interest because a few KMPG staff members had worked on Netcare's computer systems.
At a briefing yesterday, former chief justice Sandile Ngcobo, the chairman of the inquiry, said the inquiry was "a research project, conducted in order to gain an in-depth understanding of our private healthcare market".
"No one is being accused of anti-competitive conduct."
Ngcobo said the commission would hire a technical panel in place of KPMG. The panel would help the commission to analyse submissions from the public and the healthcare industry.
KMPG said: "It is clear that the application [by Netcare alleging conflict of interest] is a deliberate stratagem to cause maximum delay to the start of the healthcare inquiry."
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