Court attaches R575m to pay Gauteng health negligence cases

3 October 2019

Gauteng Health Department bank accounts have been attached to enforce payment of R574 730 051 for 213 cases of medical negligence since January 2018.

This is revealed by Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku in a written reply to my questions in the Gauteng Legislature.

According to Masuku, the attachment of the Department’s FNB bank accounts was because of non-payment of court orders, and R170 485 745 is still owing because “The Department has not budgeted for litigations relating to medico legal matters.”

It is really shameful that lawyers have to attach bank accounts to get court-ordered payment for medical negligence, mostly for children brain-damaged at birth.

Previously, sheriffs of the court used to physically attach furniture from the Department’s head office, but this was of little value so bank accounts are now attached.

I commend the Department for its plans to resolve negligence claims by mediation instead of long court cases, but the first prize should be to dramatically improve treatment so that patients are not harmed in hospitals.

The high number of negligence claims does not give confidence that government can successfully implement its National Health Insurance (NHI) plans.

Issued by Jack Bloom, DA Gauteng Shadow Health MEC, 3 October 2019