Medical Aid

 

‘Private healthcare not affordable, even for people who are supposedly rich’

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The findings of the Competition Commission’s Health Market Inquiry released today reveal what Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi says he already knew – that private healthcare has become so exorbitantly expensive, even those on medical aid can’t afford it.

Moreover, the commission found – during its more than four-year-long investigation – that the market was characterised by high and rising costs of healthcare and medical scheme cover, disempowered and uninformed consumers, and a general absence of value-based purchasing.

“That private healthcare has become costlier and costlier has been proven today, some of us knew it long ago back in 2009 that private healthcare no longer affordable, even for people who are supposedly rich who are on medical aid can’t afford it,” Motsoaledi said at the briefing held in Sandton to announce the release of the much anticipated provisional report.

According to the inquiry’s chairperson, former Chief Justice, Sa
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The most expensive and cheapest medical aids in SA for 2017

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The latest GTC Medical Aid Survey for 2017 has been released, which compares local medical aid schemes on cost to members across various levels of cover.

According to GTC, medical aids are complicated schemes, and comparing them is an almost impossible task; however it has developed a review process that compares schemes across specific categories, rather than on specific services offered.

For its 2017 review, GTC screened 23 medical aids (22 open and 1 closed scheme) offering 144 plans.

The rankings in the GTC Medical Aid Survey are based on the concept of a total cost or a risk rating for each medical aid plan.

This risk rating is derived from a risk premium, which represents the premium paid monthly minus the allocation to what is known as the ‘savings’ or out-of-hospital account.

“This approach removes any differences in personal circumstances, priorities or behaviours that may influence an individual’ eventual healthcare costs,” the group said.

The savi
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You might ask the following question regarding the NHI:- Will I be able to opt out of the NHI?

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In June, the health minister released the long-awaited National Health Insurance Bill. What does it mean to you and your medical aid? We tell you.

1. Will you be able to say “thanks, but no thanks”?

If the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill is passed in its current form, the NHI will be compulsory, regardless of whether you also belong to a private medical aid. So, opting out won’t be possible. The Bill says the NHI, which will be like a big, state-funded medical scheme, will be a free service, but it doesn’t tell us what benefits will be covered, how the scheme will be paid for or how much it will cost.

2. When will the NHI start, and, will it actually happen?

The NHI Bill says the scheme will be implemented in three phases — we’re currently in the second phase (2017 – 2022), during which NHI legislation has to be developed and the NHI fund has to be established. During the last phase, from 2022 – 2026, Cabinet
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Health Market Inquiry:- calls for medical aid schemes to be transparent

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A report by the Health Market Inquiry (HMI) looking into the private healthcare industry has recommended that there be increased transparency and improved competition.

The HMI released its provisional report on Thursday after hearing evidence from a number of stakeholders in the past three years.

The inquiry, which is chaired by the ex-Chief Justice, Sandile Ngcobo, was set up to look into the costs of healthcare and the operations of medical schemes.

“Overall we recommend changes to the way scheme options are structured to increase comparability between schemes and increase competition in that market.

Looking for a affordable Medical Aid or Hospital Plan, just click here Medical Aid or just send your Name, surname, age and email address to 082 738 5586

“A system to increase transparency on health outcomes to allow for value purch
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Non-invasive scan for liver disease

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In the past the only way to measure a liver’s elasticity was through a biopsy, but now, a non-invasive alternative has emerged, whereby elasticity of a patient’s liver can be measured using vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE).

Adopted as a frontline tool for assessing liver fibrosis by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) and by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), the FibroScan VCTE liver stiffness testing system generates a shear wave that travels through the liver and the speed of which is measured by ultrasonic signals. The stiffness of the liver is proportional to the speed of the shear wave.

Dr Naayil Rajabally, who has been using the system in his rooms since early 2016, says if the test reveals fibrosis, treatment can begin without any need for the liver biopsy in conditions such as viral hepatitis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), alcoholic liver disease and cholestatic liver dis
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Hier is die 20 beste hospitale in SA

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Die resultate van die nuutste peiling onder pasiënte wat Discovery Health uitgevoer het om die beste hospitale in die land aan te wys, toon sewe hospitale wat al vier jaar agtereenvolgens op die lysie is.

Lede van mediese skemas wat deur Discovery Health geadministreer word, het aan die peiling deelgeneem oor die hospitale waar hulle in 2017 opgeneem is. Die lys is uit 140 hospitale saamgestel.

Life Healthcare, en die onafhanklike netwerk van hospitale wat lede van die National Hospital Network (NHN) is, het die meeste hospitale op die lys.

Netcare het net een hospitaal op die lys.

NHN het die meeste hospitale wat reeds vier jaar agtereenvolgens op die lys is.

Hier is die lys van die 20 beste hospitale in alfabetiese volgorde:

1. Ahmed Al-Kadi- private hospitaal (Durban, KwaZulu-Natal)

2. eThekwini-hospitaal en -hartsentrum (Durban, KwaZulu-Natal)

3. Gateway- private hospitaal (Umhlanga Rocks, KwaZulu-Natal)

4. Hillcrest- private hospitaal (
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You are paying more for less when it comes to medical aid, does it make sense. Here’s why.

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What are your chances of ending up in a hospital? Higher than you’d think if you are a medical aid member in a large city — and the reason reveals some never-before-seen truths about the country’s private healthcare sector.

A lack of competition within the private healthcare market is fuelling an epidemic of overtreatment — and mystery medical bills — in South Africa, the Competition Commission revealed on Thursday.

As part of a four-year investigation into private healthcare costs, the Competition Commission looked at hospital admission rates among patients treated in nine specialised areas of medicine. People who had insurance and lived near more hospitals were more likely to be admitted than people with similar conditions that lived farther away from lots of empty beds, the statutory body found.

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Comment on the NHI Bills presented by Health Minister

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Bonitas Medical Fund welcomes the draft amendment Bill to the end that it aims to make healthcare more accessible.

“While in principle we support the actions of the government and applaud them for taking proactive measures to improve the quality of national healthcare in South Africa, we have reservations and concerns around some of the proposed amendments. And this not only in respect of representing private medical schemes,” says Kenneth Marion, COO of Bonitas Medical Fund.

The universal National Health Insurance Bill proposed by The Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, is defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as ‘universal health coverage means people will receive the health services they need without suffering financial hardship’.

Looking for a affordable Medical Aid or Hospital Plan, just click here Medi
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Fixing an ailing system, South Africa’s universal health care plan falls short

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South Africa’s Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has finally gazetted the bill detailing an ambitious plan to roll out universal health care in the country through a National Health Insurance.

The bill responds to a global campaign spearheaded by the World Health Organisation and linked to the UN’s sustainable development goals to make sure that no-one is left behind in accessing quality health care.

There’s no dispute that South Africa’s health care system needs major reforms. There are considerable inequities in health care between urban and rural areas; between public and private health sectors and between primary health care and hospital care. And the country has a complex disease burden with heavy caseloads of HIV, TB and non-communicable diseases.

Looking for a affordable Medical Aid or Hospital Plan, just click here Medical Aid or just send your Na
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Medical Schemes amendments could threaten schemes’ sustainability

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While the proposed amendments to the Medical Schemes Act seek to lower the cost of private healthcare, they may have the unintended consequence of threatening the sustainability of medical schemes.

The amendments look at abolishing the practice of copayments on certain benefits, removing waiting periods and prescribed minimum benefits and tapping into the reserves medical schemes are required to hold.

These provisions in isolation could affect the financial stability of medical aids, says Lerato Mosiah, CEO: Health Funders Association (HFA). “Whilst we welcome the dialogue in the sector, it is critical that this takes into consideration the broader picture and context. It is thus important to understand that medical schemes utilise risk management measures in order to ensure that they remain viable.

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Dr Aaron Motsoaledi is clueless – NHI cannot work in SA – to push ahead with it, is an act of desperation

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Plans by the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, to push ahead with the National Health Insurance (NHI), is an act of desperation. It is a decision doomed to failure from the outset.

The minister is completely out of touch with the crisis in the South African public health system, and this was highlighted by his denial of a crisis despite the damning report from the commissioner of the Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC).

Recent presentations to the Portfolio Committee on Health by each of the provinces, the OHSC and the Auditor-General, painted a picture of a health system that has collapsed entirely. It is beyond a crisis, it has simply failed.

DA visits to hospitals and clinics around the country have exposed medicine shortages, equipment shortages and a severe shortage of beds. In most hospitals visited, infrastructure is collapsing and lack of maintenance in facilities is painfully obvious.

In Limpopo alone there is a backlog of 26 000 su
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Genesis wins case on accounting for use of medical savings funds

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On Tuesday, the Constitutional Court ruled that all funds paid by members to their schemes should be considered as assets, regardless of their intended use.

Genesis medical scheme has won its legal battle with the Council of Medical Schemes over how to account for the funds in members’ medical savings accounts (MSAs), a development that has potentially far-reaching implications for both the industry and consumers.

This technical accounting point will make a material difference in the way schemes calculate their solvency ratios that measure gross income against reserves.

Treating MSA balances as assets means schemes’ reported solvency ratios will improve, because funds accumulated in MSAs will now be considered as part of a schemes’ reserves, said Insight Actuaries joint CEO Barry Childs.

This is important because better solvency ratios mean less pressure on schemes to increase premiums.

The judgment overturned a high court ruling that the council has us
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Vier maniere om jou mediesefonds-spaargeld te rek

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Ons gee verbruikers vier maniere om hul mediesefond-spaargeld te rek.

Gebruik generiese medisyne

As generiese medisyne beskikbaar is, is dit ʼn heeltemal aanvaarbare plaasvervanger vir handelsmerkmedisyne, tensy jou dokter dit spesifiek uitsluit. “Baie generiese medisyne is klone ─ dit kan deur die oorspronklike vervaardiger op dieselfde produksielyn gemaak word. Dis net die verpakking wat verskil,” verduidelik Merle Rakusin, ʼn gekwalifiseerde apteker by die Clickswinkel in Claremont.

ʼn Generiese middel moet “bioidenties” aan die oorspronklike handelsmerkmedisyne wees, wat beteken dat die volgende presies dieselfde moet wees:

  • aktiewe bestanddeel
  • sterkte
  • gebruik en uitwerking
  • wyse van toediening (byvoorbeeld ʼn pil, inaseming of vloeistof)
  • vermoë om binne die regte tydsverloop en in dieselfde mate die verlangde vlak in die bloedstroom te bereik
    toetsstandaarde

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Day hospitals: The answer to rising health costs?

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South Africans are faced with the constant increases in the cost of living and an ailing economy, forcing consumers to cut down on spending across the board.

For a small percentage of the population, healthcare costs are covered by medical aid, but only an estimated 16% of South Africans have such coverage while the rest rely on an already overburdened healthcare system. Continuing downward pressure on the economy is pushing even those with medical cover to either reduce it, or outright terminate their membership just to make ends meet, leaving more and more South Africans vulnerable.

While there are several factors contributing to the increase in private healthcare costs, including the volatile exchange rate and its impact on the cost of importing medical equipment, the rising costs of medication, doctors’ fees, the increasing average age of principal members on the schemes, the biggest culprit is private hospital costs.

According to the Council for Medical
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Technology – Egyptian e-health startup ElBalto launches mobile consultation service

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Egyptian startup ElBalto has launched a mobile application that provides users with easy, reliable, timely and affordable online video consultations via a network of customer-rated and licensed doctors.

Video consultations offered on ElBalto will initially be available in the specialisations of Psychiatry, Pediatrics, Nutrition and Gynecology, while the startup will also offer home visits in areas like Orthopedics and Cardiology.

“Currently, Egypt is suffering from a significant imbalance in the health workforce distribution, with doctors concentrated in the big cities and urban settings,” said co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Mahmoud Abdalla.

“I was personally inspired when I became a father and had to go with my wife and newborn every other week for a doctor’s appointment to get answers to very basic questions, or to follow up on treatment. We were both struggling with time, effort, cost and logistics, let alone the inconvenience if we wo
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