New health regulations not meant to control people's lives, says Phaahla
Health Minister Joe Phaahla has disputed reports that government's new draft Covid-19 regulations are an attempt to control the lives of South Africans.
Phaahla detailed the new regulations in Parliament on Friday.
He said the remarks by some experts and MPs in the media are based on misconceptions, as these regulations date back to 2017.
"As you will see from the presentation there has been some measured amendments in some cases but in many cases it's basically an amendment on regulations which have been in existence for the last five years from 2017.
"So that is what we will be presenting and we want to assure the honorable members and the public that there is no desire from myself as the minister and the team from health to want to continue to control people's lives unnecessarily. This is purely in terms of making sure that we do have instrumetnts through which this threat which still exists is controlled."
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Under the new draft regulations the state can force those who are believed to be a carrier of Covid-19 to be tested.
"These regulations provide for a warrant issued by a competent court to compel those who refuse to voluntary consent to medical examination by a qualified health care provider, including the taking of biological specimens to be admitted at a health establishment or mandatory prophylaxis treatment isolation or quarantine," the department’s legal advisor Lufuno Makhoshi told MPs.
Public comments for the new draft regulations have been extended by another seven days.
The Health Department has also established a WhatsApp line to allow the public to submit their comments.
