The Constitutional Court (ConCourt) has dealt a major blow to the Health Minister’s plans to regulate where doctors, healthcare professionals, medical equipment and health facilities may be located, reported Business Day (18 May 2026)
The ConCourt confirmed a Pretoria High Court ruling in July 2024 that Sections 36 to 40 of the National Health Act are unconstitutional and invalid.
In terms of the “Certificate of Need” (CoN) the Minister of Health would have the power to determine where healthcare professionals could practise and where health facilities and equipment could be situated.
The ConCourt found that the provisions were inconsistent with the Constitution because they unjustifiably limited the right to choose a trade, occupation or profession freely. The court ordered the Health Minister and the director-general of health to pay the applicants’ legal costs.
The case was brought by trade union Solidarity and six other applicants, including the South African Private Practice Forum (SAPPF) and several organisations representing doctors, independent private practitioners and private hospitals.