For many, hospital plans are considered an alternative to a medical aid membership, but that perception leads to a lot of heartache at times. What you need to know about hospital plans is that, while they might be concerned with your health as a medical aid is, you can entertain none of the typical “relationship” expectations as you can with medical aid. As long as you are clear that hospital plans are mostly centred on your possible hospitalisation only, you can avoid disappointment. What you need to know about hospital plans are that they only cover you for expenses you incur in a hospital, while hospitalised. It won’t pay for visits to your GP or prescription medicine and, if they do address those issues, they will offer a carefully defined and capped annual allowance per item.
This is because hospital plans are governed by legislation that does require them to cover you for several chronic conditions, thus emulating a medical aid, although the list is capped too. The problem with the hospital plan structure is often that, because it’s centred on addressing hospitalisation, its small peripheral offering can miss a lot of people. Hospital plans are somewhat less flexible than medical aids, as their point of departure is different. What you also need to know about hospital plans, is that they very often have a list of centres and practitioners you’re allowed to see. They won’t allow you to see “your” GP, perhaps, or the local dentist. You’ll most likely be obliged to visit one of the practitioners on a prescribed list.
Other Usual Aspects of Hospital Plans
Make no mistake, a hospital plan is a plan indeed, especially for the young and healthy. As long as you understand that their often affordable nature is a result of a far lesser service offering, you can compare your options. It’s crucial, as it is with any financial or other agreement, that you understand the details of hospital plans or medical aids before you utilise them. Medical cover of any kind falls into an arena where clarity is king. Life allows us to possess peripheral knowledge that is good enough for a huge variety of tasks, but when it comes to medical matters, it’s always better to drill down and make sure you understand every implication of the cover you have.
Confusion happens when terms like “unlimited” are understood differently by parties to a hospital plan. “Unlimited” would seem to imply boundless and infinite, but the reality of any medical support servicing a large group of people is that benefits need to be available to all members. That means one sudden misfortune with a single member can’t be allowed to deplete the provider financially, implying some kind of cap somewhere. So, what? They said “unlimited”, so your benefits are unlimited, right? Well, it can very easily be that unlimited benefits only apply for a while, as a promotional offer, and subsequently fall away. Typically, those with a clear understanding of how a hospital plan works will experience the least issues with cover, as their understanding informs their treatment when hospitalised.
KeyHealth Upholds Clarity
It was an unusual point of departure when KeyHealth made simplicity and clarity a key area of focus when we launched. It seems we’ve been vindicated, however, as the medical insurance landscape has become more littered with jargon, not less, and more diversified (and thus potentially confusing) for consumers. We’re clear about our offer and we eliminate the clutter and jargon so that you’re clear too. We’re all about affordable medical cover, and what you need to know about us is we speak your language!
Find us online and you’ll find elegant simplicity. Our options are clear, our benefits are clear, and when one of our representatives calls you to walk you through those options and their various benefits, we make sure that it won’t leave you feeling more confused afterwards. We are successful because we focus on you. We’re unambiguous and present your options to you in common language. KeyHealth insists that you’re crystal clear about the cover you choose. It’s the fastest route to happy members, and it makes for better, smarter business all around.