A hospital plan is the most affordable form of medical aid in South Africa. This article aims to help you decide which one should work best for you and yours. According to BusinessTech, in 2018, more than a fifth of our households had at least one occupant who belonged to a medical aid scheme, representing almost 9,4 million people in total. However, as private healthcare costs have risen due to record inflation, fewer people can afford fully-comprehensive cover today.
In practice, apart from those with a chronic illness, many can afford to cover any out-of-hospital bills, like prescription charges and GP visits, unaided. Instead, it is the potentially crippling expense due to a severe accident or unexpected medical emergency that tends to keep them awake at night. Finding the right hospital plan could alleviate their concerns. When choosing yours, the following suggestions should ensure a better night’s sleep:
- Be sure you can afford the premiums: You risk losing your cover if you fail to make the monthly payments. So be sure to choose a hospital plan that’s within your budget and leaves you with enough for any out-of-hospital medical expenses.
- Ensure your needs and those of your family are adequately covered: If you are a young, single person with good general health, you will need to look no further than the in-hospital benefits. If you add dependents, you’ll want a product that addresses their known and anticipated needs. All medical aid products are legally bound to cover 26 chronic diseases. By comparison, KeyHealth Equilibrium combines an unlimited hospital plan with cover for three additional chronic illnesses, and a medical savings account to manage your out-of-hospital healthcare bills as you choose.
- Focus on value for money: As a rule of thumb, consumers can expect that the more they get, the more they will need to pay. Fortunately, this is not always the case with medical aid. Many plans offer unlimited hospital cover plus limited day-to-day benefits. At KeyHealth, we have gone a step further by including three valuable added core benefits free of charge with each of our products.
- Avoid co-payments: Some schemes don’t meet claims in full, leaving members to make co-payments to settle the shortfall in exchange for lower premiums. KeyHealth eliminates co-payments through our network of designated service providers.
Unparalleled Hospital Plans from KeyHealth
All our plans include unlimited support with hospital bills plus varying degrees of day-to-day cover and access to our free Health Booster, Easy ER, and Smart Baby Programme. If you want to know more about our products and what makes them special, please follow this link.
