- The NHI Act says undocumented migrants and asylum seekers can’t 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. Although this is considerably lower than in the early 2000s, South Africa still has about 400 new HIV infections each day.
- If migrants seeking antiretroviral treatment (ARVs) are barred from clinics by groups like Operation Dudula or by new health laws, the country’s 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.
In today’s newsletter, our Health Beat team explains how xenophobia and flawed policy hurts our HIV fight. Sign up for our newsletter today.
Anna-Maria van Niekerk is Bhekisisa’s news editor. She joined the centre after six years as the managing editor of the investigative television show, Carte Blanche. Anna-Maria has an extensive career in in-depth health and human rights reporting and has been named both the Vodacom Journalist (2002) and Discovery Health Journalist of the Year (2010) for exposés on the selling of human body parts for muti in Limpopo and the devastating consequences of HIV denialism.
Mia Malan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Bhekisisa. She has worked in newsrooms in Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington, DC, winning more than 30 awards for her radio, print and television work.
Jessica Pitchford is Bhekisisa's TV and multimedia editor. She's been a journalist since the early nineties and has reported on some pivotal events in South Africa’s political history, such as the country’s transition to democracy and the work of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission.
Thatego Mashabela was a multimedia producer at Bhekisisa from February 2024 to October 2025.
Annisha Singh is a student at the Craig Newmark School of Journalism at City University of New York. She interned with the Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism from July to August 2025.
Krys Cerisier is a student at the Craig Newmark School of Journalism at City University of New York. She interned with the Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism from July to August 2025.
Katleho Morabe is a cinematographer and editor in film, television and advertising with credits on local (Carte Blanche) and international productions (Walt Disney).
Jeannine Snyman has worked in TV for over 25 years and has extensive experience in all aspects of the production chain.
