Discovery to increase medical aid contributions by as much as 8.9%

Discovery Health Medical Scheme (DHMS) says its medical aid contributions will increase by between 7.4% and 8.9% from 1 January 2027, with what it terms as two-thirds of beneficiaries facing increases of below 8%.

It says its weighted average contribution increase for 2027 is 8.2%, which is “approximately 2.5 percentage points lower than would have otherwise been required”.

DHMS says the “cumulative contribution increases for Discovery Health Medical Scheme over the past three years have been 5.1% lower than the weighted average increases across the next six largest open medical schemes in the market”.

The highest increases skew towards the very low-end (KeyCare, which is an income-dependent set of plans) and the higher end which includes Priority plans, Comprehensive and Executive plans, which will all see increases of 8.9%. The lowest increase is on the newly introduced Active Smart plan which saw no increase last year. At that point it was the only plan that had a zero increase.

Its Classic Comprehensive plan has long been a pillar of the scheme’s offering, especially for families, with 155 000 beneficiaries at the end of last year.

Medical inflation pressures

Its Saver plans have over 1.3 million members. Discovery has steadily tried to move its base towards this middle where there is comprehensive cover but no medical savings account.

“Medical inflation is a challenge affecting health systems globally, not only medical schemes in South Africa,” says Dr Ron Whelan, CEO of Discovery Health.

“What matters is how effectively a scheme manages those pressures. Discovery Health Medical Scheme has consistently contained contribution increases within a medical inflation corridor of CPI plus 3% to 4%, reflecting a disciplined approach to balancing affordability with long-term sustainability.”

Discovery says “medical inflation is driven by both the cost of healthcare services, and the demand for and supply of care”.

“The cost of healthcare continues to rise each year, reflecting increasing input costs as well as the ongoing introduction of new treatments, medicines and technologies. At the same time, demand for healthcare is growing as populations age and the prevalence of chronic disease increases, resulting in higher utilisation of healthcare services.

“The Scheme works to curb rising healthcare costs in two ways.

“The first is through the way it funds and manages healthcare. Discovery Health Medical Scheme promotes quality and health outcomes rather than volume only, supports care in the most appropriate setting, and remains relentless in reducing fraud, waste and inefficiency. In 2025, Discovery Health and the Scheme’s managed care initiatives saved members R12.4 billion that would otherwise have been paid out of their own pockets.

The second is how it helps members become healthier and stay healthier.

“Personal Health Pathways and Vitality … help the Scheme attract younger, healthier members, strengthening the sustainability of the risk pool. More than 70% of new members that joined the Scheme during the past two years were younger than 40 years old.

“Together, these interventions have enabled Discovery Health Medical Scheme to limit its weighted average contribution increase for 2027 to 8.2%, approximately 2.5 percentage points lower than would otherwise have been required.

“On a weighted average basis, its contribution increases have been 5.1 percentage points lower than those implemented by the next six largest open medical schemes over the past three years.”

Says Whelan: “This reflects a sustained focus on managing healthcare inflation, improving the efficiency of healthcare delivery and maintaining a healthy, sustainable risk pool.”

This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.