Sophisticated benefit design that puts medical scheme members in control of their healthcare while providing one of the strongest value propositions in the market has enabled HEALTH SQUARED Medical Scheme to implement single digit contribution increases and an array of benefit enhancements for 2020.

The scheme’s industry-leading hybrid options are setting a new standard in affordability and value within the healthcare funding industry.

“HEALTH SQUARED offers the industry’s most potent affordability and value proposition, which seamlessly integrates with the Agility Rewards programme, employee wellbeing and financial services products, offering exceptional value to individuals and employer groups alike. In terms of option-specific contribution increases for 2020, we have worked hard to ensure that our members benefit from some of the lowest increases in a decade,” comments HEALTH SQUARED spokeswoman Bianca Viljoen.

HEALTH SQUARED, which commenced operations early in 2019 following the merger of Resolution Health and Spectramed medical schemes, announced a weighted average increase of 9.8%, which translates to as little as three percent on some of its benefit options.

Members who subscribe to HEALTH SQUARED’s exclusive Agility Rewards Platinum programme can choose to offset their contribution increases through reinvesting their cash-back rewards, Viljoen explains. This programme enables families to earn up to R37 900 per year for simple, healthy lifestyle choices.

Members are rewarded for gym exercise, fitness programmes, school and university fees, flights on any airline, routine health screenings, to name but a few examples.

“Across all options, we have implemented a 4.5% increase in benefits on categories of cover, as well as additional maternity scans and other option-specific enhancements. This means that our 36,628 beneficiaries are more than recouping their annual membership fees in terms of the richness of the benefits they are entitled to.”

The scheme’s contribution increases were primarily driven by healthcare inflation, which routinely outstrips annual consumer price index inflation.

For 2020, those enrolled on HEALTH SQUARED’s Rise hospital plan would see the principal member’s contribution increase by a mere five percent, with no increase implemented for adult or child dependents.

“Amidst an industry-wide trend where medical scheme members are looking to reduce costs, individuals and families are looking for true, quantifiable value from their healthcare cover. Understandably, given conventional approaches to the provision of healthcare cover, we are increasingly finding that members want more bespoke cover that affords them greater control over their healthcare benefits.

“Employer groups are looking for the flexibility to provide cover for all levels of the workforce, as well as value-added rewards that holistically support health and wellbeing,” she notes.

“HEALTH SQUARED is addressing these market-driven needs through providing the ideal mix of traditional, new generation and hybrid model benefit options, which represents a wealth of choice for members and corporates.

“This wide range of choice and unmatched flexibility ensures that people of all ages and all income levels have their healthcare needs covered from every angle with HEALTH SQUARED,” Viljoen concludes.