# Health Insurance in SA



## happydunk (Dec 14, 2010)

Hi all

I am looking to move out to the Cape Town area with my family to start a business, one of the sticking points at the moment is how to cover the family for health issues. I contacted BUPA and for me, my girlfriend and our daughter the premium was E5000 a year (a little out of our price range)

Can anybody tell me how they go about this problem; any companies you use etc would be fantastic.

Secondly my daughter will need some immunization jabs, are you able to pay for these in the hospital or is there a special procedure you need to go through

Thanks for any help


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## Johanna (Apr 13, 2009)

happydunk said:


> Hi all
> 
> I am looking to move out to the Cape Town area with my family to start a business, one of the sticking points at the moment is how to cover the family for health issues. I contacted BUPA and for me, my girlfriend and our daughter the premium was E5000 a year (a little out of our price range)
> 
> ...


Private medical aid is expensive, you can decide on different options, but I would suggest a higher option to have complete health care cover.
Have a look at Medical Aid


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## Bootes (Feb 8, 2011)

It's certainly not cheap. The private medical care system in South Africa is very broken. The private hospitals and medical aids run a real corrupt racket and fleece the consumer. The public health care system certainly is improving but is for the most part still below the standard I would feel happy with. But when you consider the relatively low tax rates in S.A this expense is hardly back breaking relatively speaking.


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## Suki (Jan 23, 2008)

Bootes said:


> It's certainly not cheap. The private medical care system in South Africa is very broken. The private hospitals and medical aids run a real corrupt racket and fleece the consumer. The public health care system certainly is improving but is for the most part still below the standard I would feel happy with. But when you consider the relatively low tax rates in S.A this expense is hardly back breaking relatively speaking.


I actually think the medical system in the UK is more broken than the private care system in South Africa. My husband has a neurological condition and we had a long-standing relationship with his neurologist, if my husband went "squeak" I was on the phone with his neurologist. Either it was "ok come see me tomorrow" or " go to the mediclinic I will meet you there" He had top medical care in good private hospitals. Hospitals without "super-bugs", hospitals that are well-staffed, have the best equipment and can therefore offer a high quality care. In South Africa, if you have good private medical aid you can see any specialist you want, when you want and where you want. Here, it is impossible to even see a neurologist or any specialist if your GP decides you dont need to. If something happens we will have to rush off to A & E and wait for a complete stranger, who we have no relationship with and no faith in, to decide what needs to be done. I hate the idea of having to leave my husband in the care of someone we dont know, who may or may not be good at his job, and who makes decisions on treatment based on what the NHS can or cannot afford. The NHS is in such disarry I dont know how you can even compare the private medical care in South Africa to the NHS system here. 

We tried going the private route, most insurers here refuse to take my husband, or they will accept him but wont treat anything relating to his condition, or will only treat something relating to his condition after he has been a member for X amount of years. This is crazy! In South Africa this practice is not allowed, no one may be refused membership in a private medical scheme due to an existing medical condition and a medical scheme may not extort higher rates because of it. (though you may choose to pay for a "top of the range" scheme if you decide you will need it) many employers also help with contributions to a medical aid scheme as a perk. 

But, having said all of that, yes if you cannot afford a good medical aid in South Africa and your employer does not help with contributions, you are at the mercy of government medical aid, which unfortunately is substandard to private medical care. And yes private medical schemes do fleece the consumer. They may not be expensive in UK terms, considering the level of taxation in South Africa, however a good medical scheme is expensive for the average South African. We had a very good one but for obvious reasons, we chose to make sacrifices elsewhere in order to have the best. 

I would suggest the OP have a look at this website for an introduction into the South African medical aid system and for comparisons of different medical aid schemes. 

Medical Aids South Africa | Compare South African Medical Aids online


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## Johanna (Apr 13, 2009)

Bootes said:


> It's certainly not cheap. The private medical care system in South Africa is very broken. The private hospitals and medical aids run a real corrupt racket and fleece the consumer. The public health care system certainly is improving but is for the most part still below the standard I would feel happy with. But when you consider the relatively low tax rates in S.A this expense is hardly back breaking relatively speaking.


It is not cheap to belong to a medical aid in South Africa, but if I think of the medical expenses we had last year, I dread to think what we would have done without medical aid cover. 
In the UK a percentage of your NI contributions go towards the NHS but the medical care ( depending on where you live) certainly does not equal the standard of treatment my husband had and still has, in South Africa.


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## Bootes (Feb 8, 2011)

Suki said:


> I actually think the medical system in the UK is more broken than the private care system in South Africa. My husband has a neurological condition and we had a long-standing relationship with his neurologist, if my husband went "squeak" I was on the phone with his neurologist. Either it was "ok come see me tomorrow" or " go to the mediclinic I will meet you there" He had top medical care in good private hospitals. Hospitals without "super-bugs", hospitals that are well-staffed, have the best equipment and can therefore offer a high quality care. In South Africa, if you have good private medical aid you can see any specialist you want, when you want and where you want. Here, it is impossible to even see a neurologist or any specialist if your GP decides you dont need to. If something happens we will have to rush off to A & E and wait for a complete stranger, who we have no relationship with and no faith in, to decide what needs to be done. I hate the idea of having to leave my husband in the care of someone we dont know, who may or may not be good at his job, and who makes decisions on treatment based on what the NHS can or cannot afford. The NHS is in such disarry I dont know how you can even compare the private medical care in South Africa to the NHS system here.
> 
> We tried going the private route, most insurers here refuse to take my husband, or they will accept him but wont treat anything relating to his condition, or will only treat something relating to his condition after he has been a member for X amount of years. This is crazy! In South Africa this practice is not allowed, no one may be refused membership in a private medical scheme due to an existing medical condition and a medical scheme may not extort higher rates because of it. (though you may choose to pay for a "top of the range" scheme if you decide you will need it) many employers also help with contributions to a medical aid scheme as a perk.
> 
> ...


I also have a neurological condition. I find the neurologists and neurosurgeons in South Africa to be pathetic to say the least. That is at least compared to what I experienced abroad due to them not having the equipment here to treat me. Beyond that the misinformation I received from various "experts " here in South Africa nearly cost me my life. It took a tiny bit of internet research to realise my "doctor" didn't have a clue about my condition. Sugar coating something is good natured, but not always in the patients best intentions. I don't think this reflects on the private medical system as a whole as nurologists/neurosurgeons are obviosly naturally going to gravitate to the first world due to the high demand for them an the better prospects. But I can't say I will be sticking around here for any further radio treatments I need.

May I ask which neurologist you are dealing with ?


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## Suki (Jan 23, 2008)

Well it is always advisable to get a second and third opinion and to shop around for a specialist until you find one that you feel comfortable with and whom you trust. I am sorry that you had such bad experiences, however we were very happy with the level of care my husband was receiving. 

He was seeing Dr one of the top specialists in seizure disorder in South Africa, based at Constantiaberg Mediclinic in Cape Town and Neurosurgeon at Gardens Mediclinc in Cape Town. I can highly recommend them both as well as Dr at Christian Barnard Memorial Hospital. 

What we find so frustrating in the UK is that we can't "shop around" for a neurologist like we could in SA My hubby is doing very well and fair enough, it is not necessary to see one right now, however we would have liked to have been able to at least touch base with a neurologist and it makes us uncomfortable that we don't have a trusted Dr "in place" should it ever come to that again.


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## Siouxzee (Dec 8, 2010)

I would definitely go the private medical aid route and while they cant refuse you, you will normally be subject to a waiting period of 3mths or 9 - 12mths for any pre-existing conditions. I my opinion when it comes to private health care SA is top notch.
With regards to vaccinations, you can normally get them done at certain pharmacies ie Dischem, you pay for the vaccination.
Depending on how old your daughter is you can join a private ante natal clinic and they will do her vaccinations which you also pay for.


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## Siouxzee (Dec 8, 2010)

Sorry just one other note rather get covered here for medical, we are a family of 4 and pay half that in SA pey year. I would not say you need to go on the highest option of any medical aid unless you have existing conditions that require a high level of care.
Momentum Incentive is what we are currently on, with the option of being able to chose any hospital but state for chronic as none of us requires chronic medication.
I would also recommend taking out Gap cover, which is very cost effective.


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## Johanna (Apr 13, 2009)

Siouxzee said:


> Sorry just one other note rather get covered here for medical, we are a family of 4 and pay half that in SA pey year. I would not say you need to go on the highest option of any medical aid unless you have existing conditions that require a high level of care.
> Momentum Incentive is what we are currently on, with the option of being able to chose any hospital but state for chronic as none of us requires chronic medication.
> I would also recommend taking out Gap cover, which is very cost effective.


You sometimes need a higher option, we had to upgrade our option as the treatment prescribed for cancer by the private oncologist was not covered by the lower option. (Neither was the surgical procedure - another surgical method was acceptable on the lower option)
We kept our medical aid whilst we worked abroad and it was one of the best things we have done -- we were very young when we became members and had no disease that could be excluded by the Main med aid.


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## zambezi.king (Oct 8, 2009)

With regard to the vaccinations... most doctor's rooms / surgeries will do these or there are places such as the Travel Clinic, larger pharmacies have a day during the week for ante natal jabs and consultations etc.

As for medical aid... go private, go for the highest possible tier. Period. Most employers pay half of your medical as a perk and some employers insist you have a medical aid (some even insist that you belong to a certain medical aid... as mine does).

p.s. we are fleeced but when the proverbial hits the fan you would pay double not to be in the govt hospitals... been there, done that.


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## Fboti (Oct 24, 2009)

I had made some enquiries because I was in a similar situation. I did not conclude the deal, but it looked to me that the local insurrance (also covering holidays aboroad, in my case Switzerland) was cheap and effective. Don't look at these crap companies like BUPA, trying to squeeze expats.
Good luck

I am looking to move out to the Cape Town area with my family to start a business, one of the sticking points at the moment is how to cover the family for health issues. I contacted BUPA and for me, my girlfriend and our daughter the premium was E5000 a year (a little out of our price range)

Can anybody tell me how they go about this problem; any companies you use etc would be fantastic.

Secondly my daughter will need some immunization jabs, are you able to pay for these in the hospital or is there a special procedure you need to go through

Thanks for any help[/QUOTE]


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## Guest (Feb 15, 2011)

Fboti said:


> I had made some enquiries because I was in a similar situation. I did not conclude the deal, but it looked to me that the local insurrance (also covering holidays aboroad, in my case Switzerland) was cheap and effective. Don't look at these crap companies like BUPA, trying to squeeze expats.
> Good luck
> 
> I am looking to move out to the Cape Town area with my family to start a business, one of the sticking points at the moment is how to cover the family for health issues. I contacted BUPA and for me, my girlfriend and our daughter the premium was E5000 a year (a little out of our price range)
> ...


[/QUOTE]

Hi

I would suggest you look They advise expats on exactly these kinds of topics.


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