Overview
- The Constitutional Court opened hearings Tuesday on a case by the Western Cape government and the Board of Healthcare Funders that contests whether lawmakers enabled meaningful public input.
- The applicants say Parliament ran a “tick‑box” process with too little detail on costs and benefits, and the province argues the National Council of Provinces mishandled its procedure.
- Parliament and the Health Department counter that the process spanned four and a half years with hearings in all nine provinces and more than 350,000 written submissions that were considered.
- On financing, Parliament’s counsel says precise price tags are unrealistic for a reform of this scale and that government will cost steps in phases as implementation advances.
- Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi warns that an adverse ruling could set the Act aside and force Parliament to start over, while supporters say the NHI aims to fix a split system that favors private care over under‑resourced public services.