• A government report shows eight out of ten people in South Africa live without medical aid and face high costs.

• Working people pay cash for private doctors because the public health system has staff shortages and very long waiting times.

Getting sick in South Africa is costing people more money than before. Families are forced to choose between a crowded public health system and expensive private doctors.

A March 2026 report from the Competition Commission of South Africa shows the scale of the problem. It found that 84% of people in the country do not have medical aid.

Many working people go to private doctors because the public health system has long waiting times and a shortage of staff. They pay for these visits out of their own pockets.

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These private doctor visits are getting more expensive. Doctor fees are agreed upon once a year and stay the same for the rest of the year. The price of seeing a doctor has grown faster than general prices since 2025.

The government has not yet released the final numbers for 2026 doctor fee increases. Medical aid companies have already raised their prices. Discovery Health said it expects medical costs to increase by 4.2% this year. Private doctor fees usually go up by the same amount.

Many households are already struggling to pay for food, electricity, water and transport. An unexpected trip to a private doctor can ruin a family budget.

Because of the high costs, people wait as long as possible before seeing a doctor. This means their illnesses often get worse. By the time they finally get help, the treatment costs even more money.

The Competition Commission said it will keep watching the cost of private doctors. The body said affordable private healthcare is important because the public system cannot treat everyone who gets sick.

The gap between what healthcare people need and what they can afford to pay is growing.