Fedhealth medical aid plans for 2026: who they suit, what changed and what is coming in 2027

Fedhealth suits people who want to choose how much cover they pay for and are happy to use a hospital network to keep the contribution down.

• Young first-time members can start on flexiFED Savvy, a customisable hospital plan with a day-to-day back-up plan. It is Fedhealth's fastest-growing option, and the average member age is 31.
• Lower-income employees in corporate schemes can use myFED, which is priced by household income band.
• Young families get the strongest maternity and childhood benefits on the flexiFED 2, 3 and 4 plans.
• Executives and larger families can look at maxima EXEC and maxima PLUS, which have unlimited private hospital cover, savings for day-to-day costs and child rates up to age 27.

It suits you less if you want a fully open choice of hospital at the lowest price. The cheaper GRID, Elect and sureFED versions all send you to a defined hospital network, so check that your hospital and doctors are inside it.

• Fedhealth is a not-for-profit open medical scheme (registration number 1202) regulated by the CMS; its proposed amalgamation with Medshield was ended on 10 November 2025, so it continues on its own. (fedhealth.co.za)
• 2027 contribution increase: Announced 15 September 2026: 0% on the two new sureFED Traditional plans, 8% on myFED, 8.4% on flexiFED Savvy; '60% of our members will experience an average weighted increase of only 8.9%' (a scheme-wide average was not stated). All risk-benefit limits rise 3.9%. 2027 rates are published on fedhealth.co.za (e.g. flexiFED 3 and 4 hospital plans about 13.5% higher, computed from the 2026 and 2027 guides). (fedhealth.co.za)
• 2026 contribution increase: 9.6% average weighted contribution increase for 2026 (described by the principal officer as the scheme's lowest in years). (dailymaverick.co.za)
• The proposed Fedhealth and Medshield amalgamation was ended on 10 November 2025; both continue as separate open schemes (a Nov 2025 press piece had said they 'will amalgamate'). (news.medshield.media)
• Fedhealth launched two new Traditional plans, sureFED Essential (R1 940) and sureFED Plus (R3 565), in 2026, taking the range to five families: Traditional, Hospital, Savings, Income-banded and Executive; both get a 0% increase for 2027. (fedhealth.co.za)
• Barry Sundelson became Fedhealth's principal officer on 5 May 2026. (fedhealth.co.za)
• Fedhealth says it has held a Global Credit Rating of AA- for 19 consecutive years, with reserves well over the required 25%. (fedhealth.co.za)
• Members can upgrade to a higher option at any time of year within 30 days of a diagnosis or life event. (fedhealth.co.za)
• Fedhealth's GRID hospital network is described as the second largest in South Africa (Mediclinic and Netcare prominent); GRID options save 10% a month on contributions. (fedhealth.co.za)
• Child dependant rates apply up to age 27, and the fourth and subsequent child is free on the published rate tables. (fedhealth.co.za)
• D2D+ extra day-to-day benefits of up to R4 680 for 2027 when members complete required proactive health steps (R3 250 on sureFED in 2026); a partnership with Sanlam gives Fedhealth members Sanlam product benefits. (fedhealth.co.za)

Fedhealth Medical Scheme publishes 10 benefit options for 2026. Prices are the monthly contribution for a main member as published by Fedhealth, and income-banded plans show the band. Adult and child dependants pay extra. Checked on 29 September 2026.

Sources: fedhealth.co.za/...-and-Benefits-Guide-2026.pdf, fedhealth.co.za/...-and-Benefits-Guide-2026.pdf, fedhealth.co.za/...s-Benefits-Guide-DIGITAL.pdf, fedhealth.co.za/medical-aid-plans.

Every option comes in a few versions, so read the plan name carefully. The prices are in the plans and prices table on this page.

Fedhealth says members can upgrade to a higher option at any time of year, within 30 days of a diagnosis or life event. That is useful if your circumstances change, but confirm the conditions with the scheme first. For how the plan types differ in general, see the hospital plan guide.

Checked on 29 September 2026 against Fedhealth's official website. Numbers change, so confirm on the linked page before you call. A scheme will not ask you to pay into a new bank account over the phone: hang up and call the official number if anything feels off.

Sources: fedhealth.co.za/...us-help-you/customer-support, fedhealth.co.za. All schemes' numbers are on our medical aid contact numbers page.

Most Fedhealth plans steer you to a hospital network. Fedhealth describes its GRID network as the second largest in South Africa, with Mediclinic and Netcare hospitals prominent, and GRID options save 10% a month on contributions. sureFED and myFED each use their own hospital networks.

If you use a hospital outside your plan's network by choice, scheme rules can add a co-payment. In a genuine emergency you may go to the nearest facility.

Day-to-day cover works differently across the range:

• sureFED has fixed-limit day-to-day benefits.
• flexiFED hospital plans can be paired with day-to-day savings, and the savings versions include a savings allocation in the contribution.
• myFED includes unlimited contracted nominated GP visits.
• D2D+ gives extra day-to-day benefits when you complete required proactive health steps. That was up to R3 250 on sureFED in 2026 and is up to R4 680 for 2027.

Child dependant rates apply up to age 27, and the fourth and later children are free on the published rate tables. The Fedhealth Member App lets you make claims, request authorisations and earn rewards, and the site also offers virtual consultations.

Fedhealth's contact centre also handles hospital authorisations and chronic medicine, and Medscheme runs disease management. Register any chronic condition with the scheme so your medicine is paid from the right benefit, and check the formulary and limits in the benefit guide for your plan.

Whatever plan you pick, every scheme must pay for Prescribed Minimum Benefits (PMBs) in full. The CMS says these cover 271 conditions and 26 chronic conditions.

For maternity, flexiFED 3 and 4 have rich maternity and childhood benefits and a basic dentistry benefit once you reach Threshold, and flexiFED 2 also has generous maternity and childhood cover. Fedhealth runs a Baby Programme and has a dedicated emergency number that includes MediTaxi and travel assist, plus an HIV disease management line. The contact table lists all of these.

For 2026 Fedhealth raised contributions by 9.6% on average, weighted, which its principal officer described as the scheme's lowest in years. It also launched sureFED Essential and sureFED Plus, and moved maxima options under an Executive label.

Fedhealth says it has held a Global Credit Rating of AA- for 19 consecutive years, with reserves well over the required 25%.

For 2027, announced on 15 September 2026:

Risk-benefit limits and savings allocations rise 3.9%. Fedhealth has not stated a scheme-wide average, so the 8.9% covers only 60% of members. A broker analysis says some flexiFED and Executive options rise by up to 13.5%. That is not an official Fedhealth figure, so check the 2027 rates guide for your own plan.

For context, the CMS recommends that 2027 increases be anchored at 3.8%. That is a benchmark, not a hard cap: a scheme that needs more must justify it. See 2027 medical aid increases for how other schemes compare as they announce.

• Medshield is the other open scheme that was in merger talks with Fedhealth. Both continue separately. Medshield has announced a 7.9% weighted average increase for 2027, while Fedhealth's scheme-wide figure is not published. See the Medshield page.
• Bonitas raised contributions 8.88% for 2026, against Fedhealth's 9.6%.
• Discovery Health Medical Scheme had a 7.2% weighted average for 2026, all deferred to April, which made its effective increase for the year 5.4%.

Compare like with like: a network hospital plan is not the same product as an any-hospital plan.

As an open scheme, Fedhealth must accept anyone who applies and can pay, but it can still apply waiting periods. If you have had no scheme cover for at least 90 days, the maximum is a 3-month general waiting period and a 12-month condition-specific waiting period. With a shorter gap after earlier cover, the rules are narrower, and PMB treatment is excluded from the waiting period. Read the waiting periods guide for the details.

A late-joiner penalty applies to anyone aged 35 or older who joins without earlier cover. The maximum loading is 5% for 1 to 4 years of missing cover, 25% for 5 to 14 years, 50% for 15 to 24 years and 75% for 25 years or more. Example: a 45-year-old with no earlier cover is 10 years over 35, so the maximum is 25%, and it applies only to that person's share of the contribution. The late-joiner penalty guide explains how earlier cover reduces it.

For 2026/27 the medical scheme fees tax credit is R376 a month for the main member, R752 for the member and one dependant, and R254 for each extra dependant. See the tax credit guide.

Apply on fedhealth.co.za, through the Fedhealth Member App or with a registered broker. Fedhealth has a separate broker call centre. Official site: fedhealth.co.za. The medical aid contact numbers page also lists every scheme's official lines.

If you have a problem, complain to Fedhealth first and keep the reference numbers. If you are not satisfied, you can refer it to the CMS once you have used the scheme's own dispute process. Send the CMS a completed complaint form and proof that you escalated to the scheme, at [email protected]. The CMS acknowledges in writing within 6 working days and aims to finish within 120 calendar days of receiving the scheme's response and documents. Submit as soon as you cannot resolve it, preferably within 3 years. The CMS complaints guide walks through the steps.

Gap cover is not a medical scheme benefit. It is a health insurance product, and complaints about it go to the National Financial Ombud, not the CMS.