What do I need to apply for medical aid?

When you apply for a medical aid plan, you’ll need to submit several sets of personal details for yourself and your dependants. This application process helps your medical aid decide whether you meet their joining criteria and can become a member.

For most medical aid schemes including Fedhealth, you’ll need to submit the following details:

Personal details – including your name, ID, date of birth, language, marital status and contact details.
Dependants – if you want to add your spouse, children or other members of your family onto your medical aid plan, you’ll need to provide the same details for them as listed above.
Previous medical cover – you’ll need to give details of any previous medical aid you and/or your dependants belonged to in the past.
Medical conditions to declare – you’ll need to disclose whether you or one of your dependants has a pre-existing medical condition. Remember that if you don’t disclose this, you could limit or be excluded from receiving certain benefits, or in some cases have your membership terminated.
Banking details – you’ll need to give these in order for your medical aid to know where to pay claims to, as well as where to debit your monthly contribution from. In most cases you’ll need to provide verification for these details, such as a copy of a bank statement and a letter from the account holder.
Your income – you’ll need to provide this if you join an option that is income banded, which means that your contribution is set based on what you earn.

After filling in these details, you’ll submit the application – at which point the medical aid scheme will consider your membership. Many medical aid schemes in South Africa allow you to do this process online, making it quicker and more convenient. Some medical aid schemes might ask for supporting documentation to be submitted with your option, and to follow the instructions they have laid out on their application form. Submitting all of the documents with the original application ensures that your membership is captured without any delays.