Medical aid
schemes in South Africa
In layman's terms,
the purpose of a medical aid is to ensure that you are able to pay for
treatment received from either a GP, specialist or while in hospital.
It is very
important to "insure" your health. Accidents can happen and you and
your family's health are unpredictable. If you cannot afford comprehensive
cover, at least a basic hospital plan is recommended.
The main
differences between different medical aids and options within them, is the
cover provided with regards to specialists and other suppliers while you are in
hospital. In South Africa we have two types of medical schemes:
Closed medical aid schemes
These schemes are only open to a particular company, profession, trade,
industry, calling, association or union that have established a scheme
exclusively for their employees and members.
Open medical aid schemes
These schemes are open to the public. There are currently 26 open
medical schemes in South Africa. Their benefits are much more innovative.
Some of the open medical aid schemes in South
Africa:
Bestmed,
Bonitas,
Discovery,
Fedhealth,
Genesis,
Keyhealth,
Liberty,
Medihelp,
Medshield,
Momentum Health,
OcsaCare,
Profmed
Resolution Health,
Sizwe,
Spectramed,
Topmed.
List of Medical
Schemes with which we are registered:
BESTmed, Bonitas, Discovery, Fedhealth, Genesis,
Keyhealth, Liberty, Medihelp, Medshield,
Momentum Health, OcsaCare, Profmed, Spectramed, Sizwe, Topmed, Resolution Health.
Source: Optivest Health Services