Critics are concerned over the viability of the NHI Act as fears are mounting that the “ambitious plan could decimate private medical schemes without resolving the fundamental issues,” reported Business Day (26 May 2025).
Recent examples for concerns are
Staffing Shortages: Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (Denosa) dismissed the announcement that 200 nurses, 1,200 doctors, and 150 healthcare workers are to be employed in public hospitals.
Financial Mismanagement: R50bn was reportedly lost to unauthorised, irregular, fraudulent, and wasteful expenditure within provincial health departments between the 2019/20 and 2023/24 financial years.
According to Mark Blecher, the Treasury's Chief Director for Health and Social Development, the notion that NHI will entirely replace medical schemes is "far from reality in the near future" and that they are "not going anywhere soon”.
However, he also acknowledged the necessity of "raising taxes to fund such a large-scale system".