A heavily pregnant lady arrived at hospital admissions wanting to be admitted.
“I am a member of a very large medical scheme. Please take me to my VIP suite bed with sea view reserved exclusively for members of my very big medical scheme”, she said.
“Sorry madam”, came the reply, “all beds are owned by the hospital and are used by members of every medical scheme and non-members alike”.
“Oh, you mean that I pay a huge premium to belong to this very big medical scheme and when admitted to hospital I have no exclusive rights?” she asked
“Exactly madam. Only you know why you are paying a premium for the same benefits as everyone else”
Why pay more for the same bed in hospital?
The hypothetical scenario played out above highlights the fact that higher medical aid contributions do not buy you any more benefits when hospitalised – at least not as far as your hospital bed is concerned.
So why pay more for the same bed as the members of smaller and medium sized medical schemes who pay lower contributions?
Size in the context used above relates to number of members and not financial reserves.
Money is the globally accepted currency used to settle hospital accounts – not numbers of members. Ask your broker why you belong to a very large medical scheme and if it has anything to do with how much commission he earns. Remember, you can join any medical scheme at any time of the year and you can join most schemes directly without a broker.
