Leading Medical Aids in South Africa
Making a change in your life, no matter how big or small can be a difficult task. Choosing a good medical aid is one of these. Here we will have a look at some leading medical aids in South Africa.
There are so many misconceptions in the medical aid industry, and one of them is that they cover every treatment you have. This isn’t so. Nonetheless, many people seek the help of a medical aid if they have medical problems. Medical aid then becomes an alliance between the member and the medical scheme, with the purpose being to meet the member’s unique medical needs.
Most people will say that if you want to enjoy the very best medical care in South Africa, you should choose one of the ‘decent’ medical schemes – one of the leading registered medical aids of South Africa.
Always check for Solvency
One of the most important aspects of the leading medical aids in South Africa is that they are solvent – they’re not likely to go bankrupt so that you lose all your benefits when you need them most. When you do research on these top medical schemes, you’ll find that most of them have been running for years and that they are regarded as financially stable.
We take a look at a few of the leading medical schemes –
- Bonitas – some 650 000 lives have coverage by Bonitas. Some of these members come from blue-chip companies like Nestle and Eskom. They have been running for some three decades already, and have more than 4 500 general practitioners in their network who avoid co-payments. This is indeed a perk. With a solvency rate of 35.7%, you can rely on Bonitas not to take risks, and they also have a global credit rating of AA- which means Bonitas can meet the needs of their members.
- Momentum Health – through this medical aid’s Provider choice, members can save up to about 35 – 40% on their contributions by making use of associated providers. The medical aid also has a rewards program, giving members discounts on flights, gym membership, etc. They have a global credit rating of AA-. And a solvency ratio of 28%. You can see that Momentum is a stable medical aid and worth taking a chance on if you want your claims paid out.
More Leading Medical Aids
- Fedhealth – they are the 5th largest open medical aid and started out in 1936 already. They have their popular ‘Blue Door’ option for people with a low income. They also offer their more comprehensive schemes. And also have plans for seniors who require more benefits as they age. The medical scheme has a global credit rating of AA-. And also a high solvency ratio which means they will pay out claims in full.
- Discovery Health – they are South Africa’s largest medical scheme, covering well over 2 million people. People like their Vitality Programme – where members get discounts on travel, gym, etc. Discovery members also get cash back on certain medicines from Dischem and Clicks. Discovery is a stable medical scheme. And received an AA+ global credit rating score, the highest a South African medical scheme can get.
- Medshield – this is another leading medical scheme which opened in 1968. And has had a global credit rating of AA- for some years.
Your Health Depends on the Choices you Make
Medical schemes are all expensive. And this is why it is so important to do your research because ultimately the choice you make has your well-being at stake.
All info was correct at time of publishing