DA calls for transparency from EC Health Department amid allegations of deaths due to unpaid Telkom bills

20 September 2024

The DA has learnt from a reliable source that people have tragically lost their lives due to the Eastern Cape Department of Health’s failure to settle their bills with Telkom. The DA calls on the Department to be transparent by informing the public whether this is indeed the case and urgently announcing their plan to address the Telkom issue as well as the escalating crisis of budgetary shortfalls in the province, to prevent further loss of life.

On 1 September 2024, the Telkom landlines of several hospitals in the Eastern Cape, including Cecilia Makiwane, Frère, Bisho, Butterworth, and Nelson Mandela Academic Hospitals, as well as the Eastern Cape Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Contact Centre, were suspended due to non-payment by the Department. This, coupled with cutbacks in overtime for EMS staff, has severely impacted the Department’s ability to respond to emergencies and transfer patients from clinics and district hospitals to higher levels of care.

We were informed by a reliable source of at least two deaths, including one maternal death, and shocking delays in inter-hospital transfers, with some patients requiring urgent surgery waiting up to 18.5 hours. Further, East London’s EMS Control Centre’s fibre internet line was cut on 19 September, preventing staff from accessing emails or emergency messages sent via WhatsApp. The only lines still working are Telkom Mobile lines, which could be suspended at any moment.

The Department’s ongoing financial mismanagement and maladministration are endangering lives, and the DA urges swift and decisive action. Without drastic and urgent improvements in the public health sector, the proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) will remain a non-starter.

Issued by Karl le Roux, DA Deputy Spokesperson on Health, 20 September 2024