Health Department paid R228m in negligence claims
The Gauteng Health Department has 78 court-ordered attachments of its bank account to pay for medical negligence, reports City Press.
In a reply to the DA’s questions in the provincial legislature, Health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi said the department had paid R228m in medical negligence claims.
Mokgethi said the amounts paid out ranged from R7 301 for a case in 2014 to R18.1m (the largest amount) for a case that also dated back to 2014.
The oldest case dates back to 2013 for an amount of R8.99m.
She said the department was engaging the provincial treasury on the issue of delayed or late payments in line with the provisions of the State Liability Act.
DA’s shadow MEC for Health Jack Bloom said it was shameful that the department has to be forced to pay court-ordered damages instead of paying promptly following the court case.
'Meanwhile, the victims of medical negligence have to wait longer for the payments that are due to them,’ he said.
Earlier this month, the department reported that it received 157 new summonses last year and was facing claims of about R1.6bn in medical negligence lawsuits.
The department said the legal attachment of its funds was a huge challenge as this diminished its ability to render services to patients as highlighted in the Constitution.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
