Managing increasing medical aid premiums

As medical aids release their 2019 pricing, consumers must brace themselves for another round of stiff price hikes.

Discovery Health Medical Scheme has announced a 9.2% weighted increase in premiums. Driven by rampant medical inflation, increases in chronic conditions, and crumbling state healthcare, all private medical aids are raising premiums by similar amounts.

New breakthrough treatments are being introduced. Last year alone, we saw a number of new biological cancer drugs reaching consumers. While these are wonderful advances in caring for those with chronic conditions, new medicine comes at a far higher cost. The 1% value-added tax (VAT) increase and its knock-on effect in the medical aid industry; Increases in costs of medical supplies and pharmaceuticals;

New medical appliances and technologies at high cost to hospitals and specialists;

Increase in doctors’ indemnity insurance costs.

The problem is further aggravated by the rand-dollar exchange rate and the state of our worsening public hospitals. The latest round of medical aid increases reinforces the importance of gap cover. By having gap cover to support in-hospital medical expense shortfalls, consumers are going a long way to insulating themselves against price shocks. Although these decisions must always be in consultation with your broker or financial advisor, we often find that if consumers cannot afford the increases, they should review their medical aid option with their financial advisor to ensure the correct gap cover option is aligned to their medical aid choice. Tony Singleton is Turnberry Risk Management Solutions CEO