In 2024/25 Eastern Cape Health paid R630m - around 2% of its health budget – in medico-legal claims, reducing funds available for staff, medicines, equipment and everyday care. – Business Day (18 Feb 2026)
At the same time, poor clinical outcomes persist, with maternal mortality far higher than in the Western Cape, highlighting the need for safer care and fairer compensation.
“Court rulings, including from the Supreme Court of Appeal, have reinforced that only Parliament can alter the legal framework. As the dispute heads toward the Constitutional Court, the central challenge remains balancing fair redress for harmed patients with protecting already strained public healthcare resources.”