Board of Healthcare Funders Launches Two Additional Legal Challenges to NHI Act
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Cape Town – 14 May 2025 — The Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) has announced plans to file two new legal challenges against South Africa’s National Health Insurance (NHI) Act. This development follows a recent Gauteng High Court ruling that ordered President Cyril Ramaphosa to provide the court with the records leading to his decision to sign the NHI Bill into law in May 2024 .BusinessLIVE+6EWN+6EWN+6
Speaking at its annual conference in Cape Town, BHF legal representative Helen Michael stated that the first of the forthcoming cases would be filed directly with the Constitutional Court. This case will argue that the public participation process preceding the Bill’s passage was fundamentally flawed and did not adequately consider public input. Michael described the government’s public hearings as “meaningless and flawed,” suggesting that they failed to meet constitutional standards for public consultation.EWN
The second legal challenge will focus on specific provisions within the NHI Act that the BHF contends are unconstitutional. The organization, representing numerous medical aid schemes, plans to support both applications with expert reports .EWN+1meded.co.za+1
These actions are part of a broader legal effort by various stakeholders to contest the NHI Act. Previously, the BHF and the South African Private Practitioners Forum (SAPPF) were granted permission by the Gauteng High Court to challenge the President’s decision to sign the legislation. The court affirmed its jurisdiction to review the President’s actions, dismissing arguments that such matters fall exclusively under the Constitutional Court’s purview .allAfrica.com+9EWN+9Bizcommunity+9Bizcommunity+2BusinessLIVE+2Moonstone+2
The President has been given until Friday to submit the requested records to the High Court. The BHF anticipates that these documents will provide further grounds to support its new legal challenges.Bizcommunity+3EWN+3EWN+3
The NHI Act, aimed at overhauling South Africa’s healthcare system to provide universal health coverage, has faced criticism from various sectors. Critics argue that the Act lacks clarity on funding mechanisms and may infringe upon constitutional rights .Daily Maverick
As legal proceedings continue, the BHF maintains its stance that while it supports the goal of universal health coverage, the current form of the NHI Act requires significant revisions to address constitutional and practical concerns
