The Comprehensive Series
The Comprehensive Plans offer you extensive cover in hospital and comprehensive day-to-day benefits
You have access to additional benefits
- Cover for innovative medical technologies and expensive medicines with the Specialised Medicine and Technology Benefit, including cover for evidence-based treatment not available in South Africa up to a limit and with a co-payment
- You can select the Delta options for a significant reduction in contributions if you use a hospital in the Delta Hospital Network
- Emergency response services nationwide with Discovery 911
- Cover for up to 90 days for medical emergencies when you travel overseas, up to R5 million for each person
- Evacuation benefits for medical emergencies when travelling or working in Africa through the Africa Benefit
- The Insured Network Benefit ensures that you are always covered for consultations at a GP in our network and blood tests at our network providers, without any gaps
Your cover in hospital
Whether you need to be hospitalised for a planned hospital procedure or need emergency cover, the Comprehensive Series offers cover in a private hospital with no overall limit
We cover you in a private hospital for emergency and planned hospital admissions that you have authorised with us.
Emergency cover when you need it most
In an emergency, go straight to hospital but call us or get someone to call us within 12 hours.
If you need medically-equipped transport in a medical emergency, call 0860 999 911. This line is managed by highly qualified emergency personnel who will send the most appropriate air or road emergency evacuation transport.
Cover for planned hospital admissions
Please call us 48 hours before you go to hospital to confirm your admission.
You must use a network hospital on the Delta option
On the Classic and Essential Delta Comprehensive options, you are covered in full at hospitals in the Delta Hospital Network. For planned admissions at any other private hospital, you must pay a deductible of R3 850.
The Delta Hospital Network
Gauteng
- Arwyp Medical Centre
- Life Bedford Gardens Hospital
- Bougainville Private Hospital
- Life Brenthurst Clinic
- Life Carstenhof Clinic
- Clinix Private Hospital – Lesedi
- Clinix Private Hospital – Sebokeng
- Clinton Clinic
- Emfuleni Medi-Clinic
- Life Fourways Hospital
- Legae Private Hospital
- Lenmed Clinic Limited
- Life Little Company of Mary
- Louis Pasteur Hospital
- Midvaal Private Hospital
- Morningside Medi-Clinic
- Life Robinson Private Hospital
- Life Roseacres Clinic
- Suikerbosrand Clinic
- The Donald Gordon Medical Centre
- Life Wilgeheuwel Hospital
Day Hospitals
- Birchmed Day Clinic
- Boksburg Medical & Dental Centre
- Brooklyn Surgical Centre
- Centurion Eye Hospital
- Clinton Clinic
- Constantia Park Medical & Dental Centre
- Cormed Clinic
- Fauchard Clinic
- Fordsburg Clinic
- Johannesburg Clinic
- Johannesburg Eye Hospital
- Karibu Day Clinic
- Kilnerpark Narko Clinic
- Mayo Clinic
- Medgate Day Clinic
- Medkin Clinic
- Mercidoc Day Clinic
- Ocumed
- Oprimed
- PJ Schutte Theatre Unit
- Silverton Medical & Dental Centre
- The Healthy Eye
- Visiomed Eye Laser Clinic
- Wilgeheuwel Day Clinic
Free State
- Pelonomi Private Hospital
- Life Rosepark Hospital
- Universitas Private Hospital
Day Hospitals
- Bethlehem Medical Centre
- CityMed Theatre
- Bloemfontein Eye Clinic
KwaZulu Natal
- Life Chatsmed Garden Hospital
- Life Entabeni Hospital
- Midlands Medical Centre
- Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital
- Life Westville Hospital
Day Hospital
- Bluff Medical & Dental Centre
Western Cape
- Cape Town Medi-Clinic
- Life Claremont Hospital
- Life Kingsbury Hospital
- Mitchells Plain Medical Centre
- Panorama Medi-Clinic
- Vergelegen Medi-Clinic
Day Hospitals
- Khangella Eye Theatre
- Panorama Laser Clinic
- Parow Medical & Dental Centre
- Wesfleur Private Clinic
No overall limit
There is no overall hospital limit on the Comprehensive Series. Limits, clinical guidelines and policies apply to some healthcare services and procedures.
Your cover for healthcare professionals
We have negotiated with the majority of specialists to guarantee that when you use a specialist in our direct payment arrangements we pay them directly at our agreed rate. This means that when consulting a specialist in our direct payment arrangements you will be covered in full.
Full cover for specialists participating in our payment arrangements
You can benefit by using healthcare professionals participating in our direct payment arrangements because we will cover their approved procedures in full. If you are a Classic Comprehensive Plan member, you benefit from access to the broadest range of specialists whom we pay in full, which represents over 87% of specialist interactions.
You may have a co-payment if you use other specialists
If you are treated in hospital by a specialist who does not participate in one of our payment arrangements, we cover you up to 200% of the Discovery Health Rate on Classic Comprehensive and up to 100% of the Discovery Health Rate on Essential Comprehensive.
Other healthcare professionals
We cover GPs and other healthcare services up to 200% of the Discovery Health Rate on Classic Comprehensive and up to 100% of the Discovery Health Rate on Essential Comprehensive.
We cover radiology and pathology up to 100% of the Discovery Health Rate on all plans.
Your cover for investigations
Scopes (gastroscopies, colonoscopies, sigmoidoscopies and proctoscopies)
We pay the first R1 750 of your hospital account from your day-to-day benefits. We pay the balance of the hospital account and your related accounts from your Hospital Benefit. A related account is the account for your admitting doctor, anaesthetist and any approved expense you incur during your hospital admission, other than the hospital account.
MRI and CT scans
If you are in hospital as part of an approved hospital admission, we cover your MRI or CT scan up to the Discovery Health
Rate from your Hospital Benefit.
If you are admitted for conservative back or neck treatment, we pay the first R1 975 of the scan code from your day-to-day benefits. We pay the balance from your Hospital Benefit up to the Discovery Health Rate.
Unlimited healthcare services
Most of your in-hospital healthcare services have no overall limit. These include:
- GPs
- Allied healthcare professionals, for example physiotherapists
- HIV cover if you are registered on the HIVCare Programme
- Specialists
- Blood tests and x-rays
Limited healthcare services
Only the following healthcare services have a limit:
| Dentistry* | There is an overall limit of R18 500 for each person. We pay the first R1 975 of your hospital account from your day-to-day benefits. We pay the balance of the hospital account from your Hospital Benefit. We pay all related accounts from your day-to-day benefits. The R1 975 co-payment does not apply when children 12 years old or younger are admitted to hospital. |
| Cochlear implants, auditory brain implants and processors | R126 000 for each person for each benefit |
| Internal nerve stimulators | R96 000 for each person |
| Hip and knee joint prostheses | There is no overall limit if you get your prosthesis from our preferred suppliers. If you choose not to, a limit of R31 500 will apply to each prosthesis. |
| Prosthetic devices used in spinal surgery | R20 000 for each level, limited to two levels for each procedure, and one procedure for each person each year |
| Mental health benefit | 21 days for each person |
| Alcohol and drug rehabilitation | 21 days for each person |
| Terminal care benefit | R23 400 for each person |
* This limit applies to the hospital account and all accounts related to the admission to hospital. A related account is the account for your admitting doctor, anaesthetist and any approved expense you incur during your hospital admission, other than the hospital account. We pro-rate this benefit according to when you join the medical scheme.
DiscoveryCare looks after you in times of need
Your cover for chronic conditions
The Chronic Illness Benefit offers you flexible cover for chronic conditions – you always have the option of full cover through our medicine list or the choice of using any medicine up to a set monthly amount.
You have extensive and flexible cover for a list of chronic conditions. You have full cover for approved medicine on Discovery Health’s medicine list or up to a set monthly amount for medicine not on our list.
The medicine list for Comprehensive Plans has more medicines on it than most other plans. If you choose to use medicines that are not on the medicine list, you have a higher amount available to you than on most other plans.
We pay medicine up to a maximum of the Discovery Health Medication Rate. We need to approve your chronic condition before it is covered from the Chronic Illness Benefit.
Your cover for medical technology and expensive medicine
The Specialised Medicine and Technology Benefit extends your cover to the latest treatments, medicines and technologies.
You have additional cover for a defined list of the latest treatments through the Specialised Medicine and Technology Benefit, up to R200 000 for each person. Please call us to see whether your treatment qualifies.
This benefit includes access to the Overseas Treatment Benefit, where you are covered when you travel to seek evidence-based healthcare not available in South Africa at a registered healthcare professional, up to a limit of R500 000 for each person. You will need to pay and claim back from us when you return to South Africa.
Entry criteria and co-payment of up to 20% applies to both benefits.
Your cover for cancer treatment
DiscoveryCare’s Oncology Programme covers you for cancer treatment.
DiscoveryCare’s Oncology Programme covers the first R400 000 of your approved cancer treatment over a 12-month cycle, in full, after which a 20% co-payment will apply, without any overall limits.
Radiology and pathology approved for your cancer treatment is also covered. Oncology treatment that falls within the Prescribed Minimum Benefits is always covered in full, with no co-payment. Please call us to register on the Oncology Programme.
Your cover for day-to-day medical expenses
The Medical Savings Account puts you in control of your day-to-day medical expenses. Any unused money is carried over to the following year.
We pay for your day-to-day medical expenses like GP visits, x-rays and blood tests from your Medical Savings Account, as long as you have money available. You may need to pay for your day-to-day medical expenses if you have run out of money in your Medical Savings Account before your claims add up to the Annual Threshold. Once your claims add up to the Annual Threshold, we pay the rest of your claims from the Above Threshold Benefit at the Discovery Health Rate.
Extending your day-to-day cover
Early detection and prevention of diseases is vital to your wellbeing. The Screening and Prevention Benefit pays for a range of
healthcare services that help to prevent and screen for diseases that would otherwise go unnoticed.
Discovery Health pays claims for some day-to-day expenses to make the money in your Medical Savings Account last longer:
- The Screening and Prevention Benefit covers a range of healthcare services, including the following tests at a Discovery Wellness Network provider: blood glucose, blood pressure, cholesterol and body mass index. The benefit also covers a mammogram, Pap smear, PSA and HIV screening tests. Members from the age of 65 and members registered for certain chronic conditions are also covered for a seasonal fl u vaccine from this benefit.
- We will cover out-of-hospital claims for your recovery after certain traumatic events from the Trauma Recovery Extender Benefit. The cover applies for the rest of the year in which the trauma takes place, as well as the year after your trauma.
- We will pay for endoscopies done in your doctor’s rooms (gastroscopy, colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy and proctoscopy) without using your day-to-day benefits as we pay these accounts from the Hospital Benefit. We pay up to 200% of the Discovery Health Rate if you are on a Classic Comprehensive Plan and up to 100% of the Discovery Health Rate if you are on an Essential Comprehensive Plan. Please call us before you have a scope in your doctor’s rooms to confirm your benefits.
The Insured Network Benefit ensures you have no gaps in cover for GPs and pathology in our network
The Insured Network Benefit covers GP consultation fees, and blood tests requested using the Discovery Health pathology form, at our network providers, to ensure that you don’t have any gaps in cover.
We further extend your day-to-day cover through the Insured Network Benefit. When you have spent your annual Medical Savings Account deposit:
- We cover the full cost of your consultation fees if you go to a GP in our network. We pay the claim directly to the GP.
- We cover blood tests at our network providers if your GP or specialist requests the appropriate tests using the Discovery Health pathology form.
The Above Threshold Benefit offers extra day-to-day cover
Your day-to-day cover is further extended through the Above Threshold Benefit – a safety net that covers you when your expenses add
up to a set amount.
The Comprehensive Series includes an Above Threshold Benefit that gives you further day-to-day cover when your Medical Savings Account runs out and when your day-to-day claims add up to a set rand amount. On the Comprehensive Series, the Above Threshold Benefit is unlimited.
For you to get to your Above Threshold Benefit, we add your claims up to your Annual Threshold. Here are the amounts that we add up:
- For Premier Rate specialists, we add up the Premier Rate. For non-participating specialists, we add up the Discovery Health Rate.
- For generic medicine, we add up 100% of the Discovery Health Medication Rate. For non-generic medicines, we add up 75% of the Discovery Health Medication Rate. Over-the-counter medicines do not add up to your Annual Threshold.
- We add up the Discovery Health Rate for all other healthcare services.
We add up the amount to the benefit limit available.
No annual limit on these day-to-day healthcare services
We pay for these healthcare services from your Medical Savings Account or Above Threshold Benefit with no annual limit:
- GPs
- Specialists
- Allied healthcare professionals, for example physiotherapists
- Radiology and pathology
- We pay the first R1 975 of your MRI or CT scan code from day-to-day benefits. We cover the balance from your Hospital Benefit up to the Discovery Health Rate
Limits on some day-to-day healthcare services
Some of your day-to-day benefits are limited. These limits apply to claims paid from your Medical Savings Account and Above Threshold Benefit.
| Classic | Essential | |
|---|---|---|
| Professional services | ||
| Mental health benefit* (including psychologists and psychiatrists) | You have R15 000 for your family | You have R13 100 for your family |
| Private nursing | You have R6 200 for your family | |
| Antenatal classes | You have R850 for your family | |
| Dentistry* | You have an overall limit of R18 500 for each person | |
| Medicine | ||
| Prescribed medicine* (schedule 3 and above) | Single member: R15 700 Member with one dependant: R18 400 Member with two dependants: R21 400 Member with three or more dependants: R24 400 | Single member: R10 150 Member with one dependant: R12 300 Member with two dependants: R14 800 Member with three or more dependants: R16 200 |
| Over-the-counter medicine, including prescribed schedule 0, 1 and 2 medicine and lifestyle-enhancing products | We pay these claims from available funds in your Medical Savings Account | |
| Appliances and equipment | ||
| External medical items | You have R41 100 for your family | You have R27 300 for your family |
| Hearing aids | You have R15 000 for your family | You have R12 200 for your family |
| Optical* (includes cover for spectacles, frames, contact lenses and surgery or any healthcare service to correct refractive errors of the eye, for example excimer laser) | You have R2 600 for each person | |
* We pro-rate this benefit according to when you join the medical scheme.
Medical Savings Account Amounts
| Main member | Adult | Child** | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Comprehensive (25%*) | 7 044 | 6 660 | 1 404 |
| Classic Delta Comprehensive network option (25%*) | 6 336 | 5 988 | 1 260 |
| Essential Comprehensive (15%*) | 3 540 | 3 348 | 708 |
| Essential Delta Comprehensive network option (15%*) | 3 192 | 3 012 | 636 |
* Medical Savings Account amounts as a percentage of total contributions
** We count a maximum of three children when we work out the monthly contribution.
Annual Threshold amounts
| Main member | Adult | For each child (to a maximum of three) |
| R7 700 | R7 700 | R1 450 |
2010 monthly contributions
2010 monthly contributions
| Classic Comprehensive | Monthly Risk Contribution | Monthly MSA | Total Monthly Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main member | R1 761 | R587 | R2 348 |
| Adult | R1 665 | R555 | R2 220 |
| Child | R352 | R117 | R469 |
| Classic Delta Comprehensive | Monthly Risk Contribution | Monthly MSA | Total Monthly Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main member | R1 585 | R528 | R2 113 |
| Adult | R1 499 | R499 | R1 998 |
| Child | R317 | R105 | R422 |
| Essential Comprehensive | Monthly Risk Contribution | Monthly MSA | Total Monthly Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main member | R1 677 | R295 | R1 972 |
| Adult | R1 586 | R279 | R1 865 |
| Child | R335 | R59 | R394 |
| Essential Delta Comprehensive | Monthly Risk Contribution | Monthly MSA | Total Monthly Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main member | R1 509 | R266 | R1 775 |
| Adult | R1 427 | R251 | R1 698 |
| Child | R302 | R53 | R355 |
General exclusions
Discovery Health does not cover certain healthcare services. You can find a full list of these exclusions here.
How to join Discovery Health
We market our Discovery Health Plans through independent and accredited financial advisers. If you want a financial adviser to help you choose a Health Plan to suit the needs of your family, please send us your contact details and we will contact you.