ActionSA can reveal, through a parliamentary reply to our question, that the Department of Health does not track whether patients in public healthcare facilities are South African citizens, documented foreign nationals or undocumented individuals.
This admission validates our longstanding concern that South Africa’s public healthcare system is burdened by an unquantified and unmanaged demand. In the absence of tracking, verification or appropriate data collection, the Department is unable to account for the full scope of service delivery liabilities.
We believe that this is particularly concerning given that millions of foreign nationals, many of whom are undocumented or lack any form of medical insurance, reasonably make use of taxpayer-funded public healthcare services. In a public health system already buckling under pressure, with overcrowded hospitals, long queues, understaffing and medicine shortages, this lack of oversight is reckless and unsustainable.
The absence of patient categorisation, where health records fail to distinguish between citizens and foreign nationals, severely compromises effective planning, budgeting, and policy formulation. This is further compounded by the lack of any identification or status verification mechanism, which means patients are not required to present identification, preventing healthcare providers from verifying legal status or maintaining accurate and continuous patient records.
In May, ActionSA submitted proposals to amend Section 27 of the Constitution to address the untenable reality in which South Africa is expected to provide unlimited public healthcare to undocumented immigrants. This situation is not mirrored in any other country, where foreign nationals are typically required to possess medical insurance as a condition of their visa applications. Yet South Africans are being gaslit into accepting this unsustainable burden as normal.
ActionSA will continue to put South Africans first, ensuring that their access to healthcare is never compromised and that we build a system that delivers quality and affordable care.
ActionSA Reveals Health Department’s Blind Spot on Foreign Nationals in Public Healthcare
ActionSA can reveal, through a parliamentary reply to our question, that the Department of Health does not track whether patients in public healthcare facilities are South African citizens, documented foreign nationals or undocumented individuals.
This admission validates our longstanding concern that South Africa’s public healthcare system is burdened by an unquantified and unmanaged demand. In the absence of tracking, verification or appropriate data collection, the Department is unable to account for the full scope of service delivery liabilities.
We believe that this is particularly concerning given that millions of foreign nationals, many of whom are undocumented or lack any form of medical insurance, reasonably make use of taxpayer-funded public healthcare services. In a public health system already buckling under pressure, with overcrowded hospitals, long queues, understaffing and medicine shortages, this lack of oversight is reckless and unsustainable.
The absence of patient categorisation, where health records fail to distinguish between citizens and foreign nationals, severely compromises effective planning, budgeting, and policy formulation. This is further compounded by the lack of any identification or status verification mechanism, which means patients are not required to present identification, preventing healthcare providers from verifying legal status or maintaining accurate and continuous patient records.
In May, ActionSA submitted proposals to amend Section 27 of the Constitution to address the untenable reality in which South Africa is expected to provide unlimited public healthcare to undocumented immigrants. This situation is not mirrored in any other country, where foreign nationals are typically required to possess medical insurance as a condition of their visa applications. Yet South Africans are being gaslit into accepting this unsustainable burden as normal.
ActionSA will continue to put South Africans first, ensuring that their access to healthcare is never compromised and that we build a system that delivers quality and affordable care.