A total of 37 hospitals across the country have so far been exempted from load shedding and Health Minister Joe Phaahla says he wants to see all public hospitals and other healthcare facilities spared from power cuts.

‘The 37 hospitals are not enough. It is a drop in the ocean. We want to make sure that the over 300 hospitals and a lot more health centres in the country are exempted. We want the remaining 90% to get on board,’ Phaahla said during an online media briefing on Friday, according to News24.

He said private hospitals had not asked to be spared from load shedding.

The department's focus, he said, was public facilities because they serve more than 80% of the population. Phaahla said the department was also looking at finding alternative power sources.

Currently, hospitals use generators during power cuts.

He said: 'All provinces are reporting that their budgets for diesel are depleting much earlier. It was only meant for emergencies. What we are looking at … as a Ministry … is to make an approach to the National Treasury to make a case for possible assistance to mitigate against money shortages as a result of unforeseen expenditure on diesel and other consumables.'

He said other than budget constraints, the backup power supply was not meant to be used as the primary electricity source.

Phaahla added that constant power cuts posed a risk to equipment like ventilators, the cold chain storage of medication, and vaccines.

The Northern Cape is the only province with no hospitals that are exempt from load shedding.

Full News24 report