Section 27 and the overlooked crisis — why healthcare access starts with diabetes action
Political acknowledgement must be backed by actionable public health measures, including early diagnosis, accessible primary healthcare screening, and uninterrupted medication supplies, if South Africa is to beat the country’s leading cause of natural death.
South Africa's healthcare system is grappling with an overlooked crisis, as diabetes emerges as the leading cause of natural death in the country, accounting for more than 6% of recorded deaths in 2024. Despite South Africa's constitutional promise of equal access to healthcare services through Section 27, many diabetes-related deaths could be prevented or delayed through timely diagnosis and effective care.
Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi's acknowledgment of diabetes as a crisis marks a critical shift in political visibility, yet it does not translate into concrete actions such as ensuring insulin availability, reducing diagnostic queues, or equipping primary healthcare facilities with necessary tools for early detection. For individuals living with diabetes, the constitutional right to healthcare becomes a stark reality, impacting children with type 1 diabetes, adults with type 2 diabetes, and the broader public health sector population.
Early action, as advocated by the International Diabetes Federation, necessitates not only individual responsibility but also a collective public commitment to accessible screening services, well-trained healthcare workers, and the availability of diagnostic equipment at local clinics. The promise of Section 27 remains unfulfilled for countless South Africans when health systems fail to detect diabetes early or maintain uninterrupted care.
Brief written by urgent.news from Daily Maverick's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
