The NHI Act says undocumented migrants and asylum seekers cant get free HIV treatment. They may only be treated for emergencies and notifiable diseases, which are serious illnesses that spread easily, like TB, for which the names of diagnosed people need to be reported to the health department.
HIV is not classified as a notifiable disease in South Africa, largely due to stigma, despite it fitting the criteria. Thanks to our advanced prevention programmes, HIV is under control, although there are still 400 new infections a day.
If migrants seeking antiretroviral treatment ARVs are barred from clinics by groups like Operation Dudula or by new health laws, the countrys new HIV infections are likely to increase.
Activists warn that exclusion threatens HIV gains made over two decades, as nervous foreigners wonder where their next ARVs will come from and risk their health and that of their sexual partners.
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