Hospital mortality rises amid political arguments

The health department of South Africa's Gauteng province has attributed rising mortality rates at some hospitals to "a rapid incline in HIV/AIDS cases".

But the Democratic Alliance (DA), an opposition political party, says the rising number of hospital deaths can also be attributed to declining healthcare standards.

According to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, health department figures released to the DA estimate an increase in mortality rates at two main provincial hospitals, located east and west of Johannesburg, at between 20 and 43 percent.

The health department contends that there is no concrete evidence linking health standards to the increasing mortality rate.