NHI implementation must advance equitable healthcare access despite legal delays. However, constitutional obligations and the merits of a particular funding model remain separate questions. Section 27 guarantees access to healthcare services. It requires reasonable legislative and other measures, within available resources, to progressively realise that right. It does not prescribe NHI as the required financing mechanism. In February 2026, the…
Tag: National Health Insurance
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Brics Health Cooperation Advances UHC Ambitions
Brics member states have committed to deeper healthcare collaboration after adopting the 16th Brics Health Ministers’ Declaration. The agreement builds on an earlier pledge to work collectively towards universal health coverage, or UHC. More than 70 representatives and partner organisations endorsed the declaration during a recent Brics health ministers’ meeting in Chandigarh, India. Delegates identified nine priority areas for cooperation.…
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Nicholas Crisp’s NHI Departure Raises Leadership Concerns
Nicholas Crisp, a key figure behind South Africa’s National Health Insurance programme, is preparing to leave the National Health Department. Crisp heads the NHI programme and serves as acting director-general of health. He said he would leave government service after September 2026. The Cabinet previously allowed him to remain in his position for another two years. This extended his service…
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National Health Insurance: ConCourt Ruling Sparks Policy Rethink
South Africa’s Constitutional Court recently delivered a landmark judgment. The court struck down sections 36 to 40 of the National Health Act. These specific clauses contained the controversial “certificate of need” scheme. Under those rules, individual healthcare providers would have required state permission to establish practices. Officials wanted to dictate exactly where medical facilities could operate. Instead of viewing this…
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Netcare CEO Transition: Melanie Da Costa Named Successor
Netcare has confirmed a high-profile leadership handover that will reshape the top team at one of South Africa’s biggest private healthcare groups. The JSE-listed company has appointed long-serving executive Melanie Da Costa as its next chief executive officer, with a phased transition that runs through 2026 and into 2027. Da Costa is currently Executive Director for Strategy and Health Policy.…
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Certificate of Need Ruling Forces Health Licensing Rethink
South Africa’s Certificate of Need Ruling has reset the policy debate on where health professionals may practise. On Monday, 18 May 2026, the Constitutional Court confirmed that provisions allowing the state to control where doctors and nurses work are unconstitutional. The court ordered that the provisions be removed from the legislation. The legal challenge was brought by Solidarity, the Alliance…
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NHI Act Court Challenge: Fairness of Public Hearings
South Africa’s National Health Insurance (NHI) legislation faced renewed scrutiny in the Constitutional Court yesterday, with arguments centred on whether Parliament’s public participation process met constitutional standards. Western Cape Premier Alan Winde brought the case, claiming the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) rushed key hearings in Gauteng and the Western Cape, making “meaningful engagement” impossible. The challenge lands at a…
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NHI Funding: Court Hears Claims Of Blind NHI Approval
The National Health Insurance (NHI) programme faced renewed legal pressure yesterday. Constitutional Court justices questioned whether the public had enough information to participate meaningfully in the law-making process. At the centre of the dispute is NHI Funding Transparency. Debate continues over whether Parliament should have provided clearer cost and funding details before passing the bill. The NHI Act aims to…
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Parliament’s NHI Process: ConCourt Tests Public Input On NHI
South Africa’s highest court will this week scrutinise Parliament’s NHI Process in two challenges that could reshape the National Health Insurance (NHI) rollout. The Constitutional Court has set aside three days, from 5 to 7 May 2026, to hear applications brought by the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) and the Western Cape government. The cases do not yet test the…
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NHI ConCourt Challenge: What’s At Stake For The Health System
South Africa’s National Health Insurance Act is one of the most ambitious legislative reforms since democracy’s advent. Its goal, universal health coverage, is widely supported. But ambition alone does not make legislation constitutional, and the upcoming NHI ConCourt Challenge will test this. The Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) will appear before the Constitutional Court from 5 to 7 May. Its…
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NHI Constitutional Court Challenge: Key Issues Unpacked
South Africa’s National Health Insurance (NHI) project is heading into a critical legal test. President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to argue before the Constitutional Court that the NHI is a necessary step to address deep inequality in access to healthcare inherited from apartheid. The case focuses on whether Parliament followed a constitutionally sound public participation process when passing the NHI…