South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) spent approximately R116 million between June and November 2025 to outsource cancer pathology tests to private providers. The emergency measure came in response to a national outcry over dangerous delays in public diagnostic services. NHLS Cancer Test Outsourcing Clears Critical Backlog The crisis intensified at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH), where…
Tag: Aaron Motsoaledi
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Motsoaledi Defends NHI Amid Legal Challenges And Criticism
South African Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has launched a strong defence of the National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme. He positions it as a moral and practical necessity for achieving universal health coverage. Speaking in Pretoria during a Universal Health Coverage Day event, Motsoaledi took aim at critics. He rejected allegations of judicial bias against the policy. International health institutions partnered…
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Sakeliga Mounts Legal Challenge Over Health Minister’s Actions
Business lobby group Sakeliga has sharply escalated the legal fight against the National Health Insurance (NHI) Act. They launched a new, two-pronged legal attack against Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi. This move directly counters the Minister’s recent attempt to pause the multiple constitutional challenges facing the controversial new law. The controversial NHI Act, which President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law…
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Minister Defends Healthcare Amid Neurologist Shortage
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has vehemently rejected accusations that the public healthcare system has collapsed. He defended the healthcare sector amidst criticism, despite confronting staggering statistics on the dire shortage of specialists in the country. The Minister’s defence of healthcare comes in the wake of revelations that the entire province of Limpopo has only one neurologist. This has led to…
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Public Health Reform: Urgent Changes Needed
The chair of Parliament’s portfolio committee on health, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, has called for urgent legislative reform. This is to tackle the escalating disruptions at public health facilities by activists from Operation Dudula. The call comes as the group intensifies its campaign to block suspected foreign nationals from accessing healthcare. Dr Dhlomo condemned the group’s actions, which have seen members…
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Lack of Data on Foreign Healthcare Users Exposed
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has made a startling admission. Due to a lack of data, the government has no information on the number of foreign nationals using South Africa’s public health facilities. This leaves policymakers blind to the full extent of the demand on the nation’s embattled healthcare system. This lack of data exacerbates the situation. The confession comes as…
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Lethal Neglect and Deaths in Kimberley Hospital
An explosive investigation by the Health Ombud has uncovered a litany of catastrophic failures and lethal neglect at the Northern Cape Mental Health Hospital. The hospital staff left patients in dangerously cold conditions without electricity. This lethal neglect led to at least two deaths and caused severe harm to others. Following a complaint from Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi in…
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Medico-Legal Claims Impacting Public Health Budgets
South Africa’s public healthcare system is under severe financial strain. The total value of medico-legal claims against the state has skyrocketed to an astonishing R77 billion as of March 2024. Provincial health departments, particularly in the Eastern Cape and Gauteng, are battling thousands of lawsuits. These lawsuits divert critical funds away from essential patient services. In a written reply to…
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UNAIDS and the Fight Against Global AIDS Progress
Decades of remarkable progress in the global fight against HIV and AIDS are in jeopardy following massive and abrupt international funding withdrawals, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and Aids (UNAIDS) announced at the launch of its Global AIDS Update 2025. The report, titled “AIDS, Crisis and the Power to Transform”, was unveiled at Bertha Gxowa Hospital in Germiston.…
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HIV/AIDS Funding Gap: Government Steps In
The South African government has stepped in with a crucial R753.5 million injection from the National Treasury to sustain the nation’s HIV/Aids programmes. This vital funding seeks to close the HIV/AIDS funding gap. The withdrawal of the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) significantly impacted this gap. This move had threatened to derail decades of progress in…
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Discovery Health Challenges ‘Flawed’ Racial Bias Report
Discovery Health has issued a sharp rebuke to the findings of the Section 59 inquiry. It alleged the company’s systems demonstrated racial bias against black healthcare practitioners. The final report, handed to Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, asserted that Discovery, along with Medscheme and the Government Employees Medical Scheme (Gems), employed procedurally unfair systems. These systems disproportionately penalised black professionals.…
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HIV Crisis: Impact of US Aid Cuts on Treatment
South Africa’s hard-won gains against the ongoing HIV crisis and AIDS are facing a perilous new challenge following significant cuts to US funding. These cuts have sparked fears of a resurgence in infections and deaths. Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, once lauded for his decisive action against the epidemic, is now under intense scrutiny for his response to the escalating…