Board of Healthcare Funders set to file two more legal challenges to NHI Act

CAPE TOWN - The Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) announced on Wednesday that it's mounting two more legal challenges against the National Health Insurance Act. 

It follows last week's successful judgment in the Gauteng High Court that the president provide it with his record of decision that led to him signing the bill into law a year ago.  

Speaking at its annual conference in Cape Town, lawyers representing the board said the new cases would target the public participation process leading up to the bill being passed by parliament, and the constitutional right to health care.  

Buoyed by last week's court ruling that found the high court did have jurisdiction to review the president’s decision to sign the NHI Act into law despite public reservations and submissions to him, the BHF said it’s preparing to make its next legal moves.  

BHF lawyer Helen Michael said the first of the cases, which would be filed imminently, directly with the Constitutional Court, would argue that public input was not properly considered.  

ALSO READ: BHF, SAPPF given green light to challenge NHI Act

"The case being that the public hearings that were held by government and which were intended to facilitate some kind of comment on the NHI Bill, were in fact and meaningless and flawed."

The BHF, which represents scores of medical aid schemes, says both its new applications will be backed up by expert reports.  

"The BHF's [other] challenge to the NHI Act is on the basis that various provisions of the act are in fact unconstitutional." 

The president has been given until Friday to submit his record of decision to the high court, which the BHF hopes will bolster its new court challenges.