Cape Town - Discovery Health is set to hike its premiums for 2017 by a weighted 10.2 percent, it says.
Discovery Health Medical Scheme says contributions to its executive and comprehensive plans will increase by 11.9 percent, 14.9 percent on the Coastal Core Plan, 7.8 percent on the Coastal Saver Plan, and 9.9 percent on all other plans.
The scheme says 8 out of 10 members will have contribution increases of 9.9 percent or less.
Inflation is currently 6 percent.
Dr Jonathan Broomberg, the chief executive officer of the scheme's administrator, Discovery Health, says it is facing a sharp rise in medical inflation, estimated at 10 to 15 percent, and that schemes generally face medical inflation of between 10 and 20 percent for next year.
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The increases are because of higher hospital admissions, fraud, wastage and abuse, and members joining the scheme only when they are sick to access benefits.
Despite this, the scheme's principal officer, Milton Streak, says the scheme's contributions are currently 15 percent cheaper than the rest of the industry. Discovery expects to maintain its competitive edge in 2017, he says.
The scheme has launched a lower-cost option aimed at young professionals for R1 100 a month, and Discovery Insure has launched a gap-cover product for its members. Gap cover provides cover when a doctor treating a member in hospital charges more than a medical scheme's rates.
IOL