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AfriForum today served a summons on President Cyril Ramaphosa and Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, Minister of Health, as part of the organisation’s legal action to challenge the constitutionality of the controversial National Health Insurance (NHI) Act. The move was announced today during a media conference at the dilapidated Kempton Park Hospital, which serves as a warning of what could await the country’s health sector should NHI be implemented.

Although other institutions have already instituted legal proceedings against the Act, this action proceeding is the first of its kind against this law. AfriForum’s summons launches a comprehensive attack on the NHI Act and points to the unconstitutionality of several provisions therein. The action proceeding offers, among other things, the opportunity to provide expert testimony in court if there are disputes about the facts.

Wian Spies, AfriForum’s legal representative in the case, says AfriForum’s legal action is based on the premise that the NHI Act is inconsistent with the Constitution and must therefore be declared invalid and referred back to parliament. 

Some points of unconstitutionality that AfriForum objects to include:

·The dilution of provincial governments’ constitutional powers.

·The restriction of patients’ freedom of choice.

·The restriction of the clinical independence of health practitioners.

·The lack of rationality of the NHI framework due to its economic unworkability.

Ernst van Zyl, AfriForum’s Head of Public Relations, points out that the NHI Act contains provisions that not only affect the constitutional rights of AfriForum’s members, but also those of the public in general.

“All citizens and Afrikaners in particular have been victims of the ANC’s ideological agenda. NHI is another such case. The ANC has already received ample evidence that it will not improve people’s healthcare, but they continue to cling to it for ideological reasons. This is why AfriForum cannot allow this to continue,” says Van Zyl.

In light of South Africa’s current political and economic climate, Louis Boshoff, AfriForum’s Spokesperson on Health, says that NHI is completely unworkable. According to Boshoff, the worst thing that can happen to taxpayers is the allocation of funds – equivalent to 10% of South Africa’s gross domestic product – to a health system that will never function effectively. 

“The true cost of NHI will be much more than its mere rand value. The loss of, among other things, constitutional rights and patients’ freedom of choice will ultimately result in a much higher price being paid,” concludes Boshoff.

Issued by AfriForum