Medical aid misery
๐ง๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐ฒ๐บ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฎ.
Is it a case of money before members? Health Squared sold itself as a โdynamic, new-age medical scheme that is continuously challenging the status quo by delivering more of the healthcare benefits you needโ. But for three years, it operated well under the mandatory solvency threshold of 25 percent without a word of caution to its members. Even as the financial situation deteriorated post-pandemic, with a rapidly dwindling membership and an above-average claims ratio from pensioners, members were oblivious that the writing was on the wall. When the axe finally fell, and the scheme applied for voluntary liquidation, members on chronic treatment for life-threatening diseases had mere days to scramble for alternative cover. The bombshell came in defiance of a bid by the Council for Medical Schemes to appoint a curator to protect members. In a lifeline to some, the court ruled that 54 members on dialysis would have their treatment and medication covered until the end of September, or until they joined another scheme. Carte Blanche investigates what this means for patients experiencing grave, life-altering risks.
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