SA’s two major union federations, Cosatu and Fedusa, have escalated their warning that the country’s healthcare funding model is pricing workers out of cover. This follows GEMS’s 9.8% increase in medical scheme tariffs in January 2026. – TimesLive (22 April 2026)
According to the unions they are prepared to use multiple levers to force reform including campaigning through Section 77 processes at Nedlac, intensified engagement in the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) and coordinated mass action. Strategic litigation and political interventions are also on the table, alongside sustained public advocacy
They argue that the current approach is “unsustainable, too expensive and failing workers”. Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has acknowledged the scale of the problem, agreeing that the model is inappropriate and that medical aid inflation has become a serious social and economic concern.