Statement by Premier Alan Winde- NHLS delays escalated to the President
8 May 2020
Yesterday, I wrote to President Cyril Ramaphosa regarding the backlogs currently being experienced in the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS), the national government entity which is mandated to complete all government testing – even from provincial governments, which are resulting in the delay of test results.
The Western Cape Minister of Health, Nomafrench Mbombo has also addressed a letter to national Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize.
Over the past two weeks, the Western Cape has more than doubled the total number of tests conducted as part of a targeted testing strategy aimed at identifying pockets of infection. We understand that as the Western Cape and other provinces have increased their focus on testing, this has placed strain on the NHLS and their resources.
Among the problems being experienced is a shortage of reagents and test kits which need to be imported from overseas. Policy decisions, such as the decision by the Department of Labour that a person must test negative before being allowed to return to work and other government departments requesting testing for their staff members, place additional strain on the system and further compound the problem.