The 88th Fedhealth Annual General Meeting took place on Thursday, 27 June 2024 as both an in-person and a virtual event. The Scheme appreciates our members for taking the time to attend the AGM.
We share some highlights from Fedhealth Principal Officer Jeremy Yatt’s presentation with you.
On the NHI Act…
Jeremy explained the next steps that the Scheme was taking as a member of the Health Funders Association (HFA) and reassured members that, for the foreseeable future, there would be no impact on their medical aid membership or benefits. (Read the next article)
On the Scheme Financials…
Against the backdrop of COVID-19 pent-up demand and a tough economic climate, the Scheme noticed the following over the 2023 financial year:
- Hospital costs increased by 16%
- Reduction in membership due to affordability
- Reduced investment income due to market performance
Benefit pricing objectives
- We’ve introduced the new low cost, smart and affordable flexiFED Savvy benefit option.
- We’re improving the Scheme’s corporate value proposition to appeal to corporates and corporate brokers.
- We’ve made no material benefit cuts, but no or lower increases to rich benefits or limits where justified.
- We’re implementing low contribution increases on growing options to promote further growth on these options.
- We’re containing overall contribution increases as far as possible, given current conditions.
- We accepted a reasonable/affordable net deficit in 2023, with corrective action planned over the next three years.
We adhere to the Medical Schemes Act that requires all options to be self-sustainable in terms of membership and financial performance.
On Fedhealth’s values…
- STEWARDSHIP – holding ourselves accountable for the responsible use of members’ funds.
- EXCELLENCE – to identify and exceed expectations in the delivery of service and products to our members.
- INTEGRITY – to maintain the highest standards of ethical behaviour in our communications, actions and relationships.
- PROFESSIONALISM – decision-making is rooted in fact-based expert advice. Professional expertise from varying disciplines is used to test and challenge personal opinions.
- INNOVATION – to consider and go beyond conventional ideas and approaches so that positive change can flourish in the delivery of cost-effective services to our members.
On industry leading product design…
- flexiFED Savvy
- The flexiFED Savvy option, a new product developed for young, digitally savvy members who are under 35 years of age, has been received well by the market.
- As at December 2023, this option had 2 496 members with an average age of 29.8 years.
- Since it’s fulfilled by digital platforms only, costs are kept down.
- Fedhealth has a very innovative day-to-day savings structure and we are the only Scheme that gives members a choice over how they would like to use and pay for their day-to-day savings with a hospital plan, a savings plan or a flexible savings plan.
- Fedhealth is the only scheme that pays for an extensive unique benefit package from Risk and not the member’s day-to-day savings. These include benefits like trauma treatment at a casualty ward, specialised radiology like MRI/CT scans, and oral and injectable female contraceptives. In 2023, we paid out R272 million Rand towards these unique benefits alone.
Fedhealth looks forward to continue looking after our members in the year to come, and we trust that this summary of the AGM presentation proves that the Scheme is exremely capable of doing so – both from a financial and strategic perspective.