Medical Aid advice and recommendations.

[DIM_MAK]

Hi there ladies and gents!

So, the wife and I have been trying to get a bun in the oven for a few years and it has been an absolute rollercoaster of ups and downs and near misses. We eventually decided to move to a small town in the Winelands for a safer/more peaceful environment, in the hope that that would help make 2020 more successful. We thought it may take a few months and we've been looking at medical aid options but there's something in the water here and it happened far sooner than we expected, so YEAH, and FUCK!

Now, the wife is 8 to 9 weeks deep and I need to get us on a decent but affordable Medical so that we can be well prepared for the next 7 months and for the big day, fingers crossed.

Being that she's already pregnant, I know it's not straight forward but also that some Medical Aids do have schemes for this specific scenario. Does anyone have any advice/recommendations? Have you been in a similar situation and what were the pitfalls/upsides/tips that you can share?

Thanks so much in advance for your insights. From a severely underprepared but very excited dad to be.

 

[Deltac89]

Hey Bud, Congrats! We've been trying for the second one a few years now as well, I'm happy for you.
Although I'm not up to date on which medical aid you should take, we have been through some stuff a swell.
First of all, are you on a medical aid now? if not, You might have an issue, some medical aids puts you on a Waiting period (2-3Months), and normally do not cover pre existing conditions (Which some again see pregnancy as a pre existing condition), I would suggest you contact a Broker near you, We are on Bestmed Pace1, and we have no issues, also make sure you get GAP Cover as well, this will then help you pay for the unforeseen costs involved.

Best of luck to you guys!

 

[RumMum]

Congrats dad to be.
Medical aid wise, none of them will cover you properly for everything, and the ones that are fairly nice to have, is very expensive. (and still don,t pay everything)
I decided to go from the best option, to the one below, this year, and get a saving of around R4000 (4 people.) I pop that money right into a savings at the moment.

They never pay everything you need. Be it some meds, treatments etc, you almost always have to pay in, and sometimes alot.
(even on a very good medical aid, I still had to pay in R31 000 for retainers for my daughter..............$#22%&

I would probably go for a middle of the road option, with a very good hospital plan on the side.

 

[rinners]

BestMed has worked alright for us. GAP cover is with TRA I believe

 

[SauRoN]

You've cocked this up unfortunately by not getting on a medical aid BEFORE falling pregnant.

It's now a pre-existing condition and will be excluded from the initial waiting period of 6 months because you've never been on a medical aid before.

If it wasn't for this I would have said Discovery Coastal Core (with your own MSA saved) would be the best option as their maternity benefits are excellent for the first two years and failing that if you don't have the self-discipline to save your own then the Coastal Saver is the exact same thin except Discovery steals keeps the money for you to pay expenses.

And then add Stratum Gap Cover to make up the difference. Bearing in mind that while you are excluded from Medical Aid cover (except emergencies) the Gap cover will also pay nothing.

As it stands though you are up shit creek.

 

[Batman]

if you or your wife work for a company that has a group scheme with a medical aid, if you join you could bypass the waiting period and be covered immediately. Ive done this before.
Then if its too late, look for a good midwife in your area, this is probably the best option anyway.
The doctors all sway you to C-section, so they can make some cash.
a midwife can help with natural birth which is better for all 3. mom dad and baby. make that 4, your wallet too

 

[Snyper564]

Your post is pretty scary TBH. Im just a bit concerned that you went through all the effort of trying obviously for a long time you even moved so you pretty serious but you didnt have medical aid? It is pretty serious, that you didnt have it in the first place. The amount of unforeseen stuff that can happen is just insane. Out of the blue my wife was hit with a unknown viral infection and hospitalised 2 years ago for just 1 week and it ran up a bill of R50K+ covered by the medical aid.

Please Please Please be responsible esp with a child coming into the picture.

 

[el3venth]

The doctors all sway you to C-section, so they can make some cash.
a midwife can help with natural birth which is better for all 3. mom dad and baby. make that 4, your wallet too

That is a not true. If you think that is true, you haven't seen a botched midwife delivery where the woman was torn open and you are the doc trying to fix up the bottom end, save the baby and keep the mom alive. Yes, my mom is a doctor, and doctors love discussing medical cases at the table.

Secondly, C-section is sometimes cheaper than natural. Check with your doc. One hour of doc times vs doc waiting around. Time is money.

 

[Iceyyyyy_ZA]

Howsit man.

Congratulations...

I was in a similar situation with my fiance. We however picked up quite a bit earlier when she was about 2-3 weeks.

Joined medical aid the day after we found out, and let them know that she is pregnant.

After the first gynae visit (8-9 weeks) we let the medical aid know.

They said that it was possible for us to not have known she is pregnant when we joined the medical aid, and they luckily covered us for the pregnancy. We joined discovery.

Good luck bud, hopefully you can get this right. Those bills are rough.

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[Snyper564]

Howsit man.

Congratulations...

I was in a similar situation with my fiance. We however picked up quite a bit earlier when she was about 2-3 weeks.

Joined medical aid the day after we found out, and let them know that she is pregnant.

After the first gynae visit (8-9 weeks) we let the medical aid know.

They said that it was possible for us to not have known she is pregnant when we joined the medical aid, and they luckily covered us for the pregnancy. We joined discovery.

Good luck bud, hopefully you can get this right. Those bills are rough.

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It's playing with fire not disclosing it. It can back fire horribly as well.

 

[realkingkam]

Lol give the oek a heart attack. .

But yeah no cover so forget about the medical aid.

Useful info

Gynea fees about 14k with scans ect.
Gynea fees delivery 30k
Hospital fee C section 3 nights 25k

Life hospital wilgeheuwel.

Cots cribs prams ect buy second hand. Half the shit you dont even use. Our best buy. Doona car seat ... 10k max you should be more than covered.


Then start with the nappies and odds now ... still have seven months to go so a jumbo pack a month with 3 wet wipes should have you covered for year 1. (Newborn 1 - 2's - 2 packs . 3's 3 packs then 4's. ) we used abit less 3's cause she started at daycare at 3 months. (Best decision ever) but another 4k a month.

4 tubs of large bum cream = 1 year.

Clothes - newborn keep it min .

3 to 6 goes quickly too shoes are a waste.

Get on a medical aid at 6 months or later to save cash speak to any medical aid. Atleast baby will be covered immediately after birth. Get it in writing. We used profmed.

Set aside 3k for mom to be for her hospital stuff. Medication take home.







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[Maxim]

most medical aids will have waiting period for pre existing conditions. You will have to look at state hospitals as they are the cheapest - wish you all the best my man

 

[realkingkam]

most medical aids will have waiting period for pre existing conditions. You will have to look at state hospitals as they are the cheapest - wish you all the best my man

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[realkingkam]

Not to scare you bud ... or be negative but best you know the situation at state hospitals to make an informed decision.

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