What is the Cost of Medical Aid

The Grant Thornton Capital Medical Aid Survey for 2018, which compares local medical aid schemes on cost to members across various levels of cover, was released to the public in July.

According to Business Tech, for the 2018 review, GTC screened 22 medical aids (21 open and 1 closed scheme – Profmed) offering 272 plans.

Medical aid prices are usually calculated depending on your salary, versus your specific needs.

Health insurance and medical aid seem quite similar, but there are distinct differences which set them apart. These differences are also responsible for the disparity of the price points at which they are being offered to customers.

Even the cheapest medical aid is usually a bit pricier than a medical aid insurance premium.

So, why is medical insurance cheaper?

Well, medical aid, which is regulated by the Medical Schemes Act is essentially Cover based on tariff codes and procedures. It often has a shortfall due to the difference between the National Recommended Price List and the South African Medical Association rates which is what healthcare professionals charge. Affinity Health wrote in January that Medical Aid must, by law, cover Prescribed Minimum Benefits.

With Medical Aid, someone who is covering a family with two adults and three kids, for example, will have much higher premiums than someone who is the sole member of his medical aid plan.

Then, there are the variable such as chronic illnesses, disabilities, extras like hospital cover, gap cover and the likes that will be considered in the overall monthly premium.

Below are the result, and the prices of South African Medical Aid schemes.

These are the top and bottom 5 medical aids in each category, for a single member. This should offer an understanding of the prices of medical aid for each income bracket, as well as a starting point for estimation for multiple members.