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News Update
Menstrual products safe, confirm Motsoaledi, WHO, SAMRC
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has added his reassurances to those of the government’s Social Protection, Community and Human Development cluster, which said this weekend...
Unions step up threats over GEMS increases
Union members of the Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS) have threatened to withdraw from the scheme – and are investigating legal action, as well...
SA leading the charge for made-in-Africa anti-HIV jab
South Africa’s National Aids Council (Sanac) has asked local drug companies to submit applications by 7 April to make generic versions of the anti-HIV...
Baby formula recalled in South Africa
The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has recalled baby formula produced by Nutricua Southern Africa, saying there is a possibility of toxin contamination within some...
Woman blames Eastern Cape hospital after open wound for 14 years
An Eastern Cape woman has spent 14 years in agony after an appendectomy left her with an open wound, which her family blames on...
Drastic action urged as child obesity set to soar to 220m by 2040
The World Obesity Federation (WOF) has said that without drastic action, half a billion children will be grossly overweight by 2040, calling on governments...
NHI needs a decade to mature, says Adrian Gore
Discovery CEO Adrian Gore says the National Health Insurance (NHI) in its current structure requires a decade or more for it to mature, and that in reality, “we...
Cancer drug pulled from market over safety concerns
The cancer drug tazemetostat (Tazverik) is being voluntarily withdrawn in the United States and all other markets over concerns about secondary cancers, pharmaceutical company...
FDA lane-change on possible autism treatment drug
Nearly six months ago, federal health officials gathered at the White House with President Donald Trump and vowed to “go bold” on autism, outlining...
Iran war freezes WHO’s medical supply hub in Dubai
The World Health Organisation has said the US-Israeli war with Iran has throttled its deliveries of vital medical supplies from the world’s largest humanitarian...
Madagascar reports first mpox death
Madagascar has reported its first death – a three-year-old girl – from mpox since the disease was detected in the country last December, according to...
French hackers steal medical details of 15m patients
In what may be the biggest health data breach in France, the Health Ministry says that administrative details and medical notes on more than...
HPCSA demands millions from former boss
The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has demanded its former president, Simon Nemutandani, repay more than R6.1m it says he allegedly siphoned...
Medscheme’s case against Bonitas off urgent roll
Medscheme has removed from the court roll its urgent application against Bonitas, in which it seeks to interdict the appointment of two new service providers,...
Some NHI implementation 'full force ahead' despite pause – Minister
Health Minister Aaron Mostoaledi said the government will continue ‘full force ahead’ to prepare for the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI), including...
SA experts reassure women after ‘chemicals in pads’ scare
A team of South African experts has sought to quell public paranoia after a recent wave of knee-jerk reaction to study findings of endocrine-disrupting...
Eastern Cape drug suppliers suspend services over R1bn unpaid bills
The Eastern Cape Department of Health is facing a critical shortage of medicines after racking up unpaid pharmaceutical bills of about R1bn, with 21...
Don't expect jobs from state, MEC tells protesting doctors
Jobless young doctors in the Eastern Cape, some of whom completed their community service in December and who protested outside the Health Department last...
Mothers call for probe into obstetric violence at state hospitals
More than 50 mothers and activists picketed outside the National Department of Health in Pretoria on Monday to demand better maternity healthcare, and calling...
Father refuses son’s blood transfusion because of religious beliefs
The life of a critically ill Mpumalanga teenager who needs a liver transplant hangs in the balance because his father has refused the blood...
New oncology clinic opens in Springbok
Cancer patients in remote Northern Cape towns will no longer have to endure gruelling journeys of up to 1 200km for life-saving treatment, thanks...
Bid to have charges dropped as UKZN med school case drags on
An attorney has formally sought the withdrawal of corruption charges against one of seven people accused of paying bribes for admission to the University...
Suspected paediatric outbreak cleared in Aberdeen
The Eastern Cape Department of Health says the recent suspected outbreak affecting children in Aberdeen in the Sarah Baartman District has stabilised, and is...
US health deals stall in Africa
Africa is proving to be not the easy pushover America had envisaged, even as the ink dried this past week on several new bilateral...
Kenyan health, hospital officials charged in multimillion-dollar fraud probe
Charges against a number of directors from various Kenyan hospitals as well as several government officials all linked to Social Health Authority (SHA) fraud –...
Spain bans energy drink sales to under-16s
The Spanish Government is moving ahead with a ban on energy drinks for minors, based on data warning of the risks of caffeine in...
Now Kennedy claims keto diet can ‘cure’ schizophrenia
US experts have condemned Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jnr’s statement recently that the keto diet could cure schizophrenia – an unfounded claim they...
Western Cape Health says meningitis under control
There is no meningococcal meningitis outbreak in the Western Cape, the provincial Department of Health and Wellness said last week, noting that only 11...
Listed prices of Ozempic to be halved in 2027, says Novo
Novo Nordisk plans to slash prices of its listed price for weight loss drug Wegovy and diabetes drugs Ozempic and Rybelsus by up to...
Kruger floods spark Limpopo malaria fears
Communities ravaged by the recent floods throughout Limpopo are facing another problem, with a noticeable increase in mosquitoes raising fears about getting sick, write Israel Nkuna...
Global experts explore SA’s future health readiness
The World Health Organisation (WHO) Country Office in South Africa and the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research recently convened an expert policy...
Africa-wide psychosis research network launched
Psychotic disorders remain under-researched and under-resourced across Africa, despite evidence that between 1% and 4.4% of people on the continent may experience psychosis during...
Digital Health Show 2026 debuts in Johannesburg this month
The Digital Health Show 2026 will make its highly anticipated inaugural debut in Gauteng on 25/26 March, firmly positioning itself as a cornerstone event...
Mediclinic wins round one in dialysis row with Life Healthcare
Medicinic has emerged victorious in its first round against against Life Healthcare Group’s bid to continue offering renal dialysis services at five Mediclinic hospitals,...
Convicted fraudster gets CEO job at Free State hospital
Free State Health has appointed convicted fraudster Zongezile Adam Zumane – with no healthcare background – as CEO of Senorita Nhlabathi Hospital, exposing the...
SCA dismisses RAF appeal over hospital claims rulings
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has dismissed with costs an application by the Road Accident Fund (RAF) to appeal a judgment, slamming the...
Medscheme, Bonitas tender battle escalates
Medscheme says it has evidence – supplied by whistle-blowers – that tender processes used by Bonitas Medical Fund to award contracts, including to Momentum...
SAHRC orders Northern Cape Health to fix mental hospital mess
The SA Human Rights Commission has given the Northern Cape Department of Health 60 days to sort out the appalling state of the Northern...
Cipla joins legal challenge as Aids drug tender row escalates
The Department of Health’s controversial Aids drug tender is under fresh attack, after Cipla filed an application in the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) last...
Previously-red-flagged firms score new oxygen tender contracts
The Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA) appears to have awarded a new R379m contract for hospital PSA oxygen plants countrywide to companies previously...