Last reviewed: August 2026. We review our guides regularly to keep them accurate.
By Martin Janse van Rensburg, Sales Manager and Financial Advisor at Curemed. Reviewed by Roxanne Hurter-Ehlers, Director of People and Governance.
Search for hospital plans under R1,500 in South Africa and you will find long lists that look generous but do not survive scrutiny. In my day-to-day advisory work at Curemed, members often ask me for genuine hospital-only cover on a tight budget, and the honest answer for 2026 is that only two true hospital-only plans sit under R1,500 a month.
Both of those options, ProSelect Savvy from Profmed and KeyCare Core from Discovery Health Medical Scheme, are income-banded and network-restricted. The advertised contribution only applies if household or personal income falls within the entry band, and only if you use the hospitals on the approved network of the scheme.
Two further options, flexiFED Savvy from Fedhealth and BonCore from Bonitas, also cost less than R1,500 and are marketed by their schemes within a hospital plan range. Each of them includes day-to-day GP benefits, so calling them hospital-only would mislead you. That distinction matters, and it shapes everything below.
In short
- Only two true hospital-only plans cost under R1,500 a month in 2026: Profmed ProSelect Savvy at R1,078 and Discovery KeyCare Core at R1,490.
- Both are income-banded. Move into a higher income band and the same option can cost well over R2,400.
- Fedhealth flexiFED Savvy at R1,155 and Bonitas BonCore at R1,275 sit under R1,500 but include GP benefits, so they are not hospital-only.
- Every option uses a hospital network, and Prescribed Minimum Benefits apply on all of them by law.
- Profmed is a restricted scheme for graduate professionals, so most readers will not qualify for it.
What does a hospital plan actually cover?
A hospital plan funds treatment while you are admitted to hospital, usually at a defined network of facilities. It is designed for the large, unpredictable events: surgery, trauma, serious illness that requires admission.
What it generally does not fund is the everyday layer: GP visits, acute medicine, dentistry and optometry. On a true hospital-only option, those costs come out of your own pocket. If you want day-to-day benefits as well, you are looking at a different product class, and I explain the pricing of that class in our guide on how much medical aid costs in South Africa.
Which four options sit under R1,500 in 2026?
Here are the four verified options, with the two hospital-only plans listed first. Note that Discovery deferred the 2026 contribution increase to 1 April 2026, so members paid 2025 rates from January to March, and only the 1 April to 31 December 2026 table is current. The weighted average increase at Discovery for 2026 was 7.2 percent, with KeyCare plans taking 7.9 percent, against the Council for Medical Schemes recommendation in Circular 24 of 2025 that increases be limited to 3.3 percent plus reasonable utilisation estimates. You can verify the Discovery figures in the official 2026 contribution table.
| Scheme and option | Main member | Adult dependant | Child dependant | Hospital-only or includes day-to-day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profmed ProSelect Savvy | R1,078 | R1,355 | R825 | Hospital-only, Savvy Hospital Network |
| Discovery Health Medical Scheme KeyCare Core | R1,490 | R1,490 | R390 | Hospital-only plus chronic medicine cover, KeyCare Hospital Network |
| Fedhealth flexiFED Savvy | R1,155 | R1,155 | R849 | Includes day-to-day: unlimited virtual GP consultations, three in-person GP consultations from risk, R0 savings allocation |
| Bonitas BonCore (new for 2026) | R1,275 | R1,275 | R1,275 (flat rate for all beneficiaries) | Includes day-to-day: unlimited virtual GP consultations, three GP consultations per beneficiary, Benefit Booster |
The Profmed rate applies only to households earning R0 to R20,000 a month, and the Discovery rate only to the R0 to R10,250 income band. Profmed is a restricted scheme open to graduate professionals only, so most readers will not qualify. Fedhealth flexiFED Savvy uses network hospitals up to PMB level of care. KeyCare Core also carries an out-of-hospital specialist limit of R5,750 per person a year on referral, with no other day-to-day cover.
How does income banding change what you pay?
Income banding is the mechanism that makes these prices possible, and it is the detail most advertising leaves out. On ProSelect Savvy, a household earning R20,001 or more pays R2,477 for the same option, more than double the entry rate.
KeyCare Core works the same way. The R1,490 rate applies to incomes of R0 to R10,250 a month. Earn R10,251 to R16,600 and the contribution becomes R1,859. Earn R16,601 or more and it becomes R2,845. Schemes verify income, so band yourself honestly at application stage. If your budget stretches slightly further and you want richer cover at a similar price point, compare the wider field of medical aid options under R1,500 in South Africa.
What does it cost to use a hospital outside the network?
Every option in the table trades price for a restricted hospital list, and the penalty for ignoring that list is real. Bonitas BonCore charges a R14,680 co-payment if a member uses a hospital outside the BonCore network, plus a R5,500 per-admission co-payment. Those co-payments are waived for motor vehicle accidents, maternity and PMB emergencies.
The legal framework sits in Regulation 8 of the Medical Schemes Act Regulations. Regulation 8(2) allows a scheme to appoint a Designated Service Provider and to charge a co-payment where the member voluntarily goes elsewhere. Regulation 8(3) treats the use as involuntary, so no co-payment applies, where the Designated Service Provider was unavailable or delayed, in an emergency, or where no Designated Service Provider is within reasonable proximity of the home or workplace of the member. Before you sign, check that the network hospitals are actually near you.
Why do Prescribed Minimum Benefits still apply on a hospital plan?
Prescribed Minimum Benefits are not optional. Every registered scheme, on every benefit option including hospital plans, must fund them. Regulation 8(1) requires a benefit option to pay in full, without co-payment or the use of deductibles, the diagnosis, treatment and care costs of the prescribed minimum benefit conditions.
PMBs cover any emergency medical condition, a set of 271 conditions defined in the Diagnosis Treatment Pairs, and 26 chronic conditions on the Chronic Disease List. The Council for Medical Schemes PMB resource page lists these in full. This safety net is a large part of why even a low-priced hospital plan carries genuine value.
Which waiting periods and penalties can a scheme apply?
Section 29A of the Medical Schemes Act 131 of 1998 allows a scheme to impose a general waiting period of up to 3 months and a condition-specific waiting period of up to 12 months. The condition-specific period relates to a condition for which medical advice, diagnosis, care or treatment was recommended or received in the 12 months ending on the date of application. Where an applicant was not a beneficiary of a medical scheme for at least 90 days immediately before applying, even PMB cover may be withheld during the waiting period.
Late joiner penalties, under Regulation 13, apply from age 35 where creditable coverage cannot be demonstrated. The penalty bands run from 0.05 times the contribution for 1 to 4 uncovered years, through 0.25 times for 5 to 14 years and 0.5 times for 15 to 24 years, up to 0.75 times for 25 or more years. The band is calculated as A equals B minus (35 plus C), where B is the age at application and C is the years of creditable coverage demonstrated. The penalty applies only to the portion of the contribution relating to the member or an adult dependant. Joining younger, and staying covered, is materially less expensive over a lifetime.
What is the medical scheme fees tax credit worth in 2026/2027?
For the year of assessment running 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027, the medical scheme fees tax credit is R376 a month, R752 a month for the taxpayer and one dependant, and R254 a month for each additional dependant. On a R1,275 contribution, that credit meaningfully reduces the real monthly cost.
The critical point I explain to members constantly: the credit belongs to the taxpayer who paid the contributions, not automatically to the main member. Where a taxpayer is not a member of any scheme and pays for two dependants who are, the combined credit is R728 a month, not R752. The scheme tax certificate is issued in the name of the member, so where the payer differs, SARS may ask for an affidavit on audit, and the same contributions may not be claimed by two taxpayers. The SARS medical credits page sets out the rules, and you can work out your own figure with our medical aid tax credit calculator.
Where does Gap Cover fit next to a low-cost hospital plan?
Gap Cover is short-term insurance, not a medical scheme, and it exists because in-hospital specialists may charge more than a scheme pays. On budget hospital plans, that shortfall risk is exactly where members get hurt financially.
The latest officially published escalated annual limit for Gap Cover is R219,845.96 per insured person a year, effective 1 April 2025. The base amount in the Demarcation Regulations is R150,000, and it escalates with inflation each 1 April. No escalated figure for 1 April 2026 had been officially published at the time of writing, so treat any 2026 number you see elsewhere with caution. Our complete guide to Gap Cover in South Africa covers the product class in depth.
If you are weighing these four options against each other, or against richer cover, a Curemed Advisor can compare across schemes at no cost to you. We have been doing this since 1992, and matching budget to cover is the core of the work. Reach out to the Curemed team when you are ready to talk it through.
Frequently asked questions
Who qualifies to join Profmed for ProSelect Savvy?
Profmed is a restricted scheme open to graduate professionals only, so the general public cannot join. If you do not hold a qualifying professional qualification, the R1,078 entry rate is simply not available to you, which leaves KeyCare Core as the remaining true hospital-only option under R1,500 on the open market for 2026.
I am moving from another scheme. Do my waiting periods start again?
Possibly, but with an important protection. Where you transfer with a break in cover of less than 90 days, your PMB cover continues even if the new scheme imposes waiting periods under section 29A. Where the break is 90 days or longer, PMB cover may be withheld during the waiting period. Time your transfer carefully and never cancel the old membership before the new one is confirmed.
Is a hospital plan enough for a person managing a chronic condition?
It depends on the condition. All four options must fund the 26 chronic conditions on the Chronic Disease List as PMBs, and KeyCare Core adds chronic medicine cover explicitly. What a hospital-only plan will not fund is routine GP visits, acute medicine and pathology outside those rules, so a member with heavy day-to-day needs should weigh an option with out-of-hospital benefits instead.
A parent pays the contributions for an adult child. Who claims the tax credit?
The parent who actually paid claims the credit, provided the adult child is a dependant of the parent for tax purposes. This holds even though the child is the principal member and the tax certificate is issued in the name of the child. Keep proof of payment, because SARS may request an affidavit on audit, and the child may not claim the same contributions as well.
Can Gap Cover be added to a hospital plan, and what does it pay for?
Yes. Gap Cover is a separate short-term insurance policy that sits alongside medical scheme membership, and you cannot hold it without belonging to a scheme. It pays the shortfall when in-hospital specialists charge above the scheme rate, up to the regulated annual limit per insured person. It does not replace a medical aid and it does not fund day-to-day expenses such as GP visits.
Sources
This article relies on the official 2026 contribution documents published by Profmed, Discovery Health Medical Scheme (contribution table linked above), Fedhealth and Bonitas; Council for Medical Schemes Circular 24 of 2025, published 1 September 2025; the Medical Schemes Act 131 of 1998 and the Regulations made under it, in particular section 29A, Regulation 8 and Regulation 13; the Council for Medical Schemes PMB resource page and the SARS medical credits page, both linked above; and the Demarcation Regulations governing Gap Cover limits.
Martin Janse van Rensburg
Sales Manager and Financial Advisor | Curemed Health and Wealth Consultants
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