Best Way to Choose Medical Aid in SA
Life is made up of a series of ups and downs, and the problem comes when we experience a medical ‘down’ time that doesn’t end. Here we will look at the best way to choose medical aid in South Africa.
When the doctor announces to you that you have a major illness – say cancer – this is where having a medical aid has significant benefits for us, both mentally and physically. Premiums vary between the products and will increase depending on the numbers of people you want to cover for.
Best Way to Choose Medical Aid
South Africa’s medical aids aren’t a one-size-fits-all. For most South Africans, they’ll need to consider the cover they need, how much they can spend, what features they want and which features don’t suit them. Some of the ways to choose a medical aid will require you asking yourself the following –
- How much premium will I pay each month?
- What is the current state of my health?
- Does the medical aid plan specify the use of network doctors and hospitals?
- Is there a co-payment for some medical procedures?
When choosing the right medical aid, you’ve got many options – Bonitas, Momentum Health, Discovery, Medshield and Fedhealth among others. Choose a medical aid you think you may like – look at other aspects of your life when you’re looking to make up your mind about medical aid.
- Are you single?
- Are you a sports person participating in one of the extreme sports?
- Also, are you married with small children?
Medical aid can take a huge chunk out of your earnings each month. Do you need comprehensive medical aid or a hospital plan? Certainly, hospital plans are far more affordable, but if you have ongoing health problems, you may need full medical cover. If you have a specific health problem, choose a scheme that makes provision for this.
Your Finances will Determine your Medical Aid Needs – Best Way to Choose Medical Aid
You’ll certainly need to assess your finances too because if your salary. For instance, is R6000 a month, paying R2 500 a month for medical aid will just cause you financial stress. Check your scheme’s solvency ratio. And if you’re wondering how on earth you can know what this is, a broker should give you the latest information.
According to law, your medical scheme must have at least a sum of25% of annual contributions of members in reserve. Find out about exclusions, because some of these schemes won’t permit you to claim for certain conditions and maybe one of these is a condition that you are battling with.
The best way to choose a medical aid in South Africa is to do research, compare and select the medical aid that suits your budget and your health.
All info was correct at time of publishing