Discovery Medical Aid Increase 2027: What Every Plan Will Cost

Last reviewed: October 2026. We review our guides regularly to keep them accurate.

By Hagop Jaghlassian, CEO at Curemed. Reviewed by Roxanne Hurter-Ehlers, Director of People and Governance.

Discovery Health Medical Scheme announced on 1 October 2026 that contributions will rise between 7.4% and 8.9% for 2027, with a weighted average of 8.2%, effective 1 January 2027. Curemed has compared the official 2026 and 2027 contribution tables plan by plan: the Executive, Comprehensive, Priority, Coastal Core and KeyCare lines rise by about 8.9%, and the Saver, Smart and Core families by about 7.9%. This article sets out what every plan will cost in 2027, including the 14 KeyCare income bands and the new Active Core plan.

What did Discovery announce for 2027?

The announcement was reported by FAnews and Moonstone on 1 October 2026. The headline is a weighted average increase of 8.2%, with plans rising between 7.4% and 8.9%. Discovery added that two out of three beneficiaries will see an increase below 8%, which fits the pattern Curemed found: the Saver, Smart and Core families carry the smaller percentage.

Discovery Health CEO Dr Ron Whelan said, as reported by FAnews, that responsible pricing gives members certainty because it balances affordability against long term sustainability. The scheme also announced one new plan, Active Core, covered below.

How does 8.2% compare with the CMS guidance and other schemes?

The Council for Medical Schemes published Circular 20 of 2026 on 31 July 2026. It recommended that 2027 contribution increases and cost assumptions be anchored at 3.8%, in line with the South African Reserve Bank inflation forecast for 2027. That is guidance rather than a cap, but 8.2% is more than double it. Our round-up of 2027 medical aid increases tracks every scheme against that anchor.

Against other open schemes, Discovery at 8.2% sits above the averages IOL reported for Momentum (7.9%), Medihelp (7.5%) and Bestmed (7.35%), and below the 8.7% that Bonitas announced on 2 October 2026. Our Momentum 2027 analysis shows a range of 7.24% to 8.51% behind that 7.9% headline, a reminder that a scheme average and the increase on your own plan line are different numbers.

Why do some Discovery plans rise 8.9% and others 7.9%?

Discovery has not published per plan percentages, so Curemed calculated them from the official 2026 contribution table and 2027 contribution table. The 2026 figures are those for 1 April to 31 December 2026, because Discovery split 2026 into two contribution periods. The results group by plan family:

• Executive, Classic Comprehensive, Classic Smart Comprehensive, Classic Priority and Essential Priority rise by 8.94% to 8.95%.
• Coastal Core rises by 8.92% and each of the 14 KeyCare bands rises by 8.90% to 8.94%.
• The Saver, Delta Saver and Smart Saver plans rise by about 7.9%, as do Classic Core, Classic Delta Core, Essential Core and Essential Delta Core.
• Classic Smart, Essential Smart and Essential Dynamic Smart rise by about 7.9%. Active Smart rises by 7.41%, the only plan below 7.9%.
• Coastal Saver is the exception in its family: the principal rate rises by 8.37%, the adult rate by 8.05% and the child rate by 7.89%.

A Comprehensive, Priority or KeyCare member should therefore budget for close to 9%, not the 8.2% headline; a Saver, Smart or Core member will land closer to 8%.

What will each Discovery plan cost in 2027?

The table lists the 21 existing plans outside KeyCare, with the principal member total contribution for 2026 and 2027. Totals include the medical savings account portion where the plan has one, so the figure is what the debit order shows.

The rand column is where the percentage becomes real. An Active Smart member pays R100 more a month, a Classic Saver member R385 more, and an Executive member R1 104 more for the principal alone, which is R13 248 a year before dependants are added.

Where does the new Active Core plan fit?

Active Core is the one new line for 2027, announced for launch on 1 January 2027 at R1 700 for the principal member, R1 550 for an adult dependant and R500 for a child, so a family of three pays R3 750 a month. As reported by FAnews, it offers unlimited private hospital cover through the Active Hospital Network and up to R8 000 in day to day benefits. The launch is subject to approval and registration by the Council for Medical Schemes, so treat the plan as announced rather than available until Discovery confirms registration. It has no 2026 figure, which is why it sits outside the table.

How do the KeyCare income bands change for 2027?

KeyCare prices by the income of the principal member, and Discovery moved the band limits for 2027. The table therefore compares band position to band position rather than like for like on income, and a member whose income is unchanged may land in a different band than before. KeyCare Plus and KeyCare Core have three bands for 2027; KeyCare Start and KeyCare Start Regional have four.

Every KeyCare line rises by about 8.9%, at the upper end of the Discovery range. In rand the increases run from R114 a month on KeyCare Start Regional in the first band to R356 on KeyCare Plus in the top band.

What does the increase look like in rand for a family?

Two examples from the official tables, each for a principal member, an adult and one child:

• Classic Saver: R4 850 plus R3 825 plus R1 943 was R10 618 a month in 2026. In 2027 it is R5 235 plus R4 128 plus R2 098, or R11 461, which is R843 more a month and R10 116 more a year.
• Essential Delta Core: R2 681 plus R2 018 plus R1 076 was R5 775 in 2026. In 2027 it is R2 894 plus R2 178 plus R1 161, or R6 233, which is R458 more a month and R5 496 more a year.

On KeyCare Plus in the first band, a principal member with one child moves from R2 674 to R2 912 a month, R238 more a month and R2 856 more a year. The annual figures are what a household has to find.

What should Discovery members do now?

Find your own plan line in the tables and budget from that, not from 8.2%. Add the adult and child lines for your family and any co-payments you expect in 2027. If the total is uncomfortable, a move to a plan with a smaller increase carries benefit trade offs and conditions, which we explain in our article on changing a medical aid plan. Do the comparison now and watch the member letter for the plan change dates.

One budgeting note. The medical scheme fees tax credit belongs to the taxpayer who pays the contributions, not automatically to the member. If a father pays the Discovery contribution for his adult daughter, who is the principal member on her own plan, the father claims the credit and the daughter does not. Our medical aid tax credit calculator shows what the credit is worth for your household.

If you would like help with your 2027 Discovery options, a Curemed Advisor can compare your current plan with the alternatives inside the scheme and show where Gap Cover may help with co-payments and shortfalls, depending on the policy. A plan change also creates scheme admin, from the change itself to authorisations and chronic medication applications under the new plan. CureClub, the Curemed healthcare support team, takes that admin on with the medical scheme on behalf of the member and escalates where something goes wrong, and a member with another intermediary can move to Curemed as Advisor of record without changing plan or scheme. Curemed has advised members since 1992 across all nine provinces, with no obligation attached to a conversation.

Which other questions come up about the Discovery 2027 increase?

Does the increase apply to adult and child dependants in the same way?

Yes, closely. On every plan the adult and child rates moved by roughly the same percentage as the principal rate. On Classic Saver the adult rate goes from R3 825 to R4 128 and the child rate from R1 943 to R2 098. Essential Smart, Essential Dynamic Smart and Active Smart charge one rate for every beneficiary, and on KeyCare the adult rate equals the principal rate.

What happens to the medical savings account amount in 2027?

The figures in this article are totals, so on the Saver, Smart Saver, Priority, Comprehensive and Executive plans the contribution shown already includes the medical savings account portion. The savings portion rises along with the total. On Classic Saver, for example, the principal member savings contribution moves from R970 to R1 047 a month, according to the official 2026 and 2027 tables. Check the 2027 benefit documents for the savings figure for your plan and family size.

Can existing Discovery members move to Active Core, and is it available now?

Not yet. Discovery has announced Active Core for launch on 1 January 2027, subject to approval and registration by the Council for Medical Schemes, and members cannot be moved onto it until it is registered. Once available, an existing member would select it through the normal plan change process for 2027, and a Curemed Advisor can help weigh its network hospital cover and capped day to day benefits against the current plan.

Can Discovery members change plans for 2027, and how does the timing work?

Discovery has not published a 2027 plan change deadline that Curemed could verify as at 6 October 2026, so do not rely on a date from a previous year. Watch for the member letter, and ask a Curemed Advisor to confirm the date and the conditions that apply before you decide. Moving to a plan with richer benefits can carry conditions, so start the comparison now.

Who approves the 2027 contributions if they are above the CMS 3.8% guidance?

A medical scheme sets its own contributions as part of its registered rules, and rule amendments go to the Council for Medical Schemes for registration by the Registrar. Circular 20 of 2026 is a recommendation about the assumptions schemes should use, not a cap, so a scheme may file an increase above 3.8%. Discovery has stated specifically that the Active Core launch is subject to CMS approval and registration; the other 2027 figures in this article are the contributions Discovery has published.

Hagop Jaghlassian

CEO | Curemed Health and Wealth Consultants

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