Unfortunately Medscheme no longer allowed to collect professional fees on behalf of brokers
As you are aware, the current Fedhealth Member Application form makes provision for the collection of a Professional Fee by you the broker (Section 10). Until now, the scheme's administrator, Medscheme, has offered a service to brokers by collecting and reconciling these fees on behalf of brokers. Unfortunately, the Council of Medical Schemes has informed Medscheme that its interpretation of this practice, as set out in the Act, is that the arrangement is a direct agreement between the broker and the member and as such the fee should be collected by the broker. The Council has therefore instructed Medscheme to cease this practice with immediate effect and not to provide this service in future.
All existing arrangements will therefore come to an end with immediate effect and Medscheme will be in contact with all brokers making use of this service to arrange the process going forward.
Please note that new member application forms without the Professional Fee section (Section 10) have been printed in line with the above and are available from Medscheme or your broker consultant. If you still have current application forms you wish to use, please ensure that the Professional Fee section (Section 10) has been crossed out. If you have negotiated professional fees with your client, please make the necessary arrangements to collect this through your brokerage.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause, but appreciate your understanding in this regard.
Welcome and best wishes to the new appointments in our Health Ministry
Our newly elected President made sweeping changes to Cabinet as he unveiled a team of 34 ministers. One of the surprises in the new cabinet was when Aaron Motsoaledi was named Health Minister and moved Barbara Hogan to the key Ministry of Public Enterprises after just six months at health, during which she was widely praised for taking into hand a challenging portfolio.
The new Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, has a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Natal. He is a former acting premier in the Limpopo province and was previously also an education MEC in the same province. His deputy Molefi Sefularo was health MEC in the North West province and appointed Deputy Health Minister by Motlanthe last year.
We welcome the appointment of Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi and the reappointment of Dr. Molefi Sefularo and hope that their appointments will steer healthcare in South Africa in the right direction. The Health Ministry has an immense responsibility to protect the health and human rights of people in South Africa, and to achieve the targets set out until 2011, especially on matters concerning HIV/AIDS.
Trauma benefit to listen and counsel always available
In January this year we added yet another benefit that makes us a medical aid that competently deals with real issues affecting our everyday lives - introducing the Fedhealth Trauma Management Programme or Independent Counselling and Advisory Services (ICAS) benefit.
Trauma, depression or generally feeling scared and desperate influence our lives and need to be treated with care and understanding in a tangible way that's totally accessible for members.
Given the nature of our society, there is always a possibility that any of us may be confronted with the trauma of violent crimes. However the Trauma Management Programme is not only there for major traumatic incidents but also for assistance with any every-day crisis or incidents for which professional support and advice could prove valuable. However in terms of major incidents our supportive staff are there to help in overcoming symptoms such as shock, anxiety, fear, hyper-vigilance, and flashbacks that arise from these incidents.
Professional, friendly support, in the form of highly qualified, professional counselors, doctors and trauma specialists is just a phone call away, toll free on 0800 212 695. These counselors will listen carefully to their problem, discuss it with them in the language of their choice, and then help them to overcome it through a carefully created programme of counseling and advice. The service is available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. It is totally confidential, and neither names nor reasons will ever be revealed to anyone.
So please tell your clients about this freely available service. Sometimes it does a world of good knowing that there's someone out there to just listen to you.
They provide unconditional love. We provide emergency cover
We would like to reiterate that this benefit only covers treatment for accidental injury to your cat or dog and not routine medical expenses, such as vaccinations, sterilization or annual check-ups etc at the vet. Accident, accidental or accidentally means a sudden, unforeseen, and unintended event causing injury to your pet. The benefit is limited to R1 500 per member family per year (not per pet), with an excess of R250 per incident.
The Financial Intermediaries Association (FIA) 2009 Awards gala banquet was held at the Sandton Convention Centre on 21 May. Representatives from various financial services providers, regulators, industry ombudsman, representative bodies and dozens of dedicated professional financial intermediaries gathered to celebrate excellence in the industry. The Healthcare Product award was hotly contested, with approximately 40 open medical schemes competing in the space. Fedhealth featured in the top three in this category proving that our philosophy of providing Real Medical Aid to our members is as important to financial advisers as it is to us.
The Cape Town Client Service Walk In Centre will be relocating from the Medscheme offices in Pinelands to 15th Floor Atterbury House, No. 9 Riebeek Street, Cape Town. The new office will open for business on Monday 15th June 2009. The old Pinelands office will still be in operation until the afternoon of the Friday 12th June 2009.
Spending time with our supporting brokers...
