Which medical aid ???

dunkyd

dunkyd

Executive Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2009
Messages
5,624
Reaction score
762
Location
Krugersdorp
What a nightmare trying to compare ????

My daughter never been on a medical aid in SA as she left here after school to UK. Currently on a quick fix Discovery Hospital Plan which we put her on when she arrived back here to work. Not much good as it's just for emergencies and you all know how many aches and pains they have at 26 !!!

Trying to make sense of Discovery plans is impossible for me. They all seem to be hospital plans plus you pay your money into their savings account and use that which is really your own money to pay doctors visits?

Any ideas out there folks ? As I said, single girl, 26 and earning ± R20,000 month.

Thanks
 
All comes down to how much she can afford to spend on it. R1100 for hospital plan vs 1700 for savings account plan.

I only got the savings account when kids came into the picture.
 
R20 000 is going to put her in a bracket where the hospital plan + savings one is going to be the cheapest. She won't be able to get (or it will be expensive on her bracket) the cheaper plans with unlimited doctors visits, like Discovery Keycare etc. Best thing will be to go to a broker and view your options.

And how's she earning that much, without an obligated medical aid? Isn't there something in our law about this?
 
beans100 said:
R20 000 is going to put her in a bracket where the hospital plan + savings one is going to be the cheapest. She won't be able to get (or it will be expensive on her bracket) the cheaper plans with unlimited doctors visits, like Discovery Keycare etc. Best thing will be to go to a broker and view your options.

And how's she earning that much, without an obligated medical aid? Isn't there something in our law about this?
Click to expand...

It is a recommendation not an obligation according to the law. Most companies do it because their employees most often than not would elect to not have medical aid as it increases their end of month salary some what. So no medical aid means not going to the doctor and more time off work when you are ill. The whole argument is moot as medical aid comes out of your CTC, the company is not actually paying out their own pocket, but rather just forcing you to take a medical aid plan with a potion of your CTC package that you cannot retain if you don't take the benefit. However you are right that the company should have some kind of corporate deal with a medical aid that includes a consultant to help select the correct one.
 
I wouldn't make a recommendation as medical aid is a personal thing. I mean if you have a chronic condition that requires doctors visits every month, it may be beneficial to get comprehensive insurance. But if you only go to the doctor every 2 years and dentist (and you are particular about which dentist) once a year, a mid range package with savings may be less expensive and perfectly adequate.

I would phone Discovery and Momentum (e.g) and say you don't know what medical aid you want. At the end of the call ask for an email quote and benefits brochure and compare the two (or three).
 
I'd suggest she gets a Classic Delta Saver on Discovery and also get Vitality.
Whatever Medical Aid Savings that she doesn't use, it's like an investment in the end.
 
Thanks so far guys. She joined a very large global company and was put on a 6 month " contract" with promises of a full time contract "soon" !! She is now on her third " contract". No benefits whatsoever.

Will look at those mention. @Bighit, she's paying 1700 already just for Hospital Plan.
 
dunkyd said:
Thanks so far guys. She joined a very large global company and was put on a 6 month " contract" with promises of a full time contract "soon" !! She is now on her third " contract". No benefits whatsoever.

Will look at those mention. @Bighit, she's paying 1700 already just for Hospital Plan.
Click to expand...

Blah sorry, had a quick look at my plan and saw the hospital component only (1710) plus savings at 427.
 
Chris14 said:
I'd suggest she gets a Classic Delta Saver on Discovery and also get Vitality.
Whatever Medical Aid Savings that she doesn't use, it's like an investment in the end.
Click to expand...

That's what I'm on, less the Vitality money-laundering scheme (it's just a value-add to fleece you, unless you really want Discovery to monitor how many potatoes you're buying at Pick n Pay lol).

Basically you get your savings portion to claim back from for GP visits, and then you also get a certain number of 'free' visits after your savings have been exhausted.

The 'benefit' financially is you get access to the full savings pocket at the start of the year (or a pro rata amount for later), giving you money to cover you when you need it ... which is still better than having to pay your own way otherwise.

The savings pocket thing works just fine: it's more than enough for the odd GP visit and even an annual splurge on something like new glasses (for example). Dentistry, not so much.

You take medical insurance to cover you in case you ever end up in the ICU or get diagnosed with a dread disease, not so much to 'save' money in the short-term. It's basically you gambling with Discovery that you'll get seriously sick, and they're gambling you won't ;)

Good luck to your daughter!

PS: Discovery's premiums are actually very competitive, and they are by far the largest insurer in SA (something like 75% of the market last time I checked). That means they have a bigger network of doctors, and I've never had any serious issues with them (never had to claim big though either *touch wood*).
 
Thanks, seems the Classic Delta Saver it is then. Now how the hell do you change now without waiting till next year ?

It's not as if she is going for something cheaper. You would think Discovery would welcome more money each month ?
 
dunkyd said:
Thanks, seems the Classic Delta Saver it is then. Now how the hell do you change now without waiting till next year ?

It's not as if she is going for something cheaper. You would think Discovery would welcome more money each month ?
Click to expand...

Yes they will, just confirm it with you Financial Advisor. I get a lot of Cash Back from Clicks, buying healthy foods and Pick n Pay/WW and will be soon from Sportsmanswarehouse/Totalsports.
 
I am also looking to get myself on medical aid.
My wife and son are on Fedhealth and they are very happy.

So I phoned around and got hold of a company that does comparisons for you, Jenus Health.
They work with like 12 or something different schemes, they do a quick assessment for you and then send you a nice side by side comparison of the ones that suit you best. BTW you tell them which ones sound best to you. They are not affiliated with any scheme.
Although I am sure they get some kind of payment from the companies.
They also offer gap cover, which takes your cover up to like 500 %, and I must say the lady who helped me was very knowledgeable and helpful.
The one I am looking at is Genesis medical.
Of all the ones I looked at in this price bracket it looks the best, imho.

If interested pm me and I can give you the lady's details, or I can post it here if it is allowed.

http://www.genesismedical.co.za/benefits-and-plans/full-cover-medical-aid-plans

PS, I don't work for or get anything from this. I just thought it might help seeing as I have been looking around for a few months now without luck and this really helped me.
 
Im busy looking at changing my medical aid. Ive compared quite a few and made a spreadsheet. So far Momentum seems like the best.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X