Motsoaledi on NHI: ‘We could be in court for 15 to 20 years’

South Africa’s National Health Insurance (NHI) system is currently fighting for survival on multiple legal fronts, with more than 10 court cases lodged against the legislation. “At the moment, we can count fourteen,” Minister Aaron Motsoaledi told the Portfolio Committee on Health on Wednesday. The most recent challenge, he noted, had come from AfriForum, with the department still awaiting formal delivery of papers at the time of the briefing.

The minister explained that the sheer volume of litigation had created a pattern the department found deeply concerning. He revealed that one case would be filed, the department would respond with affidavits, and then a separate but related party would read those affidavits and use them as the basis for yet another challenge. “It’s an unending formula,” Motsoaledi said, warning that at the rate things were going, “we might be in court for the next fifteen to twenty years.” It was this concern that led the department to approach the courts to seek the consolidation of the cases.

Their argument was straightforward: all 14 cases were challenging the same legislation, so why should they be heard by different courts? However, the opposing parties refused to consent to consolidation, which meant a full hearing on the question had to be scheduled. Before the consolidation hearing could proceed, two significant new developments complicated matters. The first was a challenge brought by the Western Cape provincial government, which argued that the National Council of Provinces had not followed the correct legislative process when passing the NHI Act.