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BL Premium reports that the Department of Health’s (DOH’s) ambitions for controlling where doctors work have been dealt a massive blow by the High Court in Pretoria, after it declared the National Health Act’s provisions for issuing health establishments with a “certificate of need” unconstitutional and invalid.
The ruling has “serious implications” for the implementation of National Health Insurance (NHI) and the DOH would seek a rescission of the judgment and challenge the matter in the Constitutional Court, its spokesperson Foster Mohale said. The department first flighted the controversial certificate of need scheme almost two decades ago, promoting it as a means to shore up health services in rural and underserviced urban areas. It has been vigorously opposed by doctors from the outset, who have argued they should be able to work where they choose. Now the High Court has in effect agreed with them, upholding an application brought by trade union Solidarity, the SA Private Practitioners Forum (SAPPF), the Alliance of SA Independent Practitioners Associations (Asaipa) and four individual healthcare practitioners to declare sections 36 to 40 of the National Health Act invalid. They argued that the scheme violated the separation of powers, was irrational, prescribed impermissibly vague criteria, and unjustifiably limited several constitutional rights. These included the rights to dignity, freedom of movement and residence, the right to choose a trade or profession, and the right not to be arbitrarily deprived of property. The applicants named health minister Joe Phaahla, health director-general Sandile Buthelezi and President Cyril Ramaphosa as respondents, none of whom opposed the matter.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page