Why Medical Aid Is NOT Just Another Variation of Health Insurance

A large number of developed/developing countries operate private healthcare systems which are largely financed by way of health insurance. In a large number of these countries, health insurance is the only hope many individuals have of being able to pay for this private healthcare. This has become a huge bug bear or many people. The huge flaw in this type of system is that insurance providers are at the most basic level money making organizations. They place their focus on turning a profit with little regard to their consumers' health. Insurers have no qualms about cutting corners to reduce costs and will often avoid risky investments, thus making some people all but uninsurable.

It's about time we looked to South Africa for guidance. A little known fact is that South Africa is actually a world leader when it comes to healthcare funding. This is due in the most part to medical aid programs. Many people assume medical aid is just another way of saying health insurance, but there are some big differences. Medical aid programs are operated by non-profit organizations, meaning they focus more on providing a great service. In this respect, medical aid is considered to be considerably superior to health insurance! Medical aid has been an important factor in building what is rapidly turning out to be one of the best private healthcare systems around the world. In fact,many medical aid providers are now starting to expand services into the Middle East and the United States.

When it comes to medical aid, everyone in that particular program pays the same monthly premium regardless of the state of their health. This is an important difference between medical aid and health insurance. Insurance providers routinely deny cover to anyone with an existing long term health problem, or else make the monthly premiums ridiculously high. This is a really big deal considering that one of the massive health concerns in South Africa is HIV and AIDS. With medical aid, those individuals diagnosed with these conditions do not have to pay anything extra.