South African healthcare system just killed my friend.

My best friend was on a photo safari in South Africa last month when he suffered a heart attack. He was deep in the bush and urgently needed to be medevacked to a hospital by helicopter.

He could easily afford any care required. But the emergency services told him they did not take credit cards — the money had to be wired to their bank account before they would dispatch a helicopter.

At 4 a.m. local time, his wife was desperately calling family back home, asking them to be at the bank when it opened at 9 a.m. to arrange the transfer. By 10 a.m., the tens of thousands of dollars demanded had been wired.

And then they waited. It took another three hours for the helicopter to be dispatched and to finally reach him. When he was flown to the cardiology facility, the hospital refused to evaluate or treat him until a second wire transfer was completed. His wife had the family rush back to the bank to send more money.

Only then, hours later, did they bring in a heart specialist. After running tests, they confirmed he needed a stent. He was prepped and taken to surgery. About an hour later, a man who called himself the doctor came out and said the surgery had been successful, but that my friend had died afterward and that "there was nothing they could have done."

There was no compassion, no grief counseling, just cold information and a number to a funeral home that she could work with to get the body back - for an additional wire.

She was completely alone for two days until her son was able to reach her. It then took two full weeks for the body to be released and transported back to the U.S.

My friend was a good man. A pillar of our community. He volunteered his construction services for people in need. He lived honestly and generously. He did not deserve to be treated this way. He could have paid for everything upfront without hesitation. But the South African health care system refused to act until they had their money in the bank. Those 18 lost hours in getting the money transferred cost him his life. He was only 60 years old.

Yes, he had travel insurance. But that meant nothing. Travel insurance reimburses you — it doesn’t pay upfront. In South Africa, if you’re a foreigner, you must have cash in their bank before they will do anything.

The funeral was yesterday. And I will never forgive them for what they did.