Rating based on 7 reviews

EssentialMed

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  • Flexible Medical Cover
  • Affordable Healthcare Plans
EssentialMed homepage
Author EssentialMed. Screenshot of EssentialMed website.
[Accessed June 12, 2023]

About EssentialMed

Essential Med is a South African medical aid provider that is dedicated to providing quality medical cover to South Africans.

They’ve been providing quality medical cover since 1994, and they are committed to offering affordable and accessible medical aid packages that are tailored to suit the needs of different individuals and families.

Values and Principles of Essential Med

  • Provide quality medical cover that is affordable and accessible
  • Ensure customer satisfaction
  • Create a positive impact on the community
  • Promote wellness and healthy living

Ready for growth and poised for continued growth

Essential Med currently has a 3.5% market share, making it one of the largest medical aid providers in South Africa. They are growing, with their membership numbers increasing year on year. They’re also expanding their services and products to meet the changing needs of their customers.

Benefits of using Essential Med

When making use of Essential Med, you get the benefit of having access to a comprehensive medical aid plan that is tailored to suit your needs.

You also get access to a range of additional benefits, such as discounts on gym memberships, access to telephonic counselling, and access to a network of doctors and specialists.

Different plans and features

Essential Med offers a range of comprehensive medical aid plans that include hospital cover, day-to-day cover, and a range of additional benefits.

They also offer a variety of add-on options, such as gap cover, dental cover, and optical cover, so you can tailor your plan to suit your specific needs. Furthermore, they offer discounts on their plans for young adults, families, and retirees.

Additional Benefits

Essential Med also offers a range of additional benefits to make life easier. This includes access to a network of doctors and specialists, discounts on gym memberships, and access to 24/7 telephonic counselling support.

EssentialMed Services

Essential Med provides a range of comprehensive medical aid plans to suit different lifestyles, budgets, and medical needs.

These plans include hospital cover, day-to-day cover, and a range of additional benefits, such as cover for chronic conditions, maternity cover, and cover for medical emergencies.

They also offer a variety of add-on options, such as gap cover, dental cover, and optical cover, so you can tailor your plan to suit your specific needs. Furthermore, they offer discounts on their plans for young adults, families, and retirees.

Essential Med’s 10 medical aid tiers

  • Essential Core
  • Essential Value
  • Essential Plus
  • Essential Access
  • Essential Elite
  • Essential Executive
  • Essential Comprehensive
  • Essential Comprehensive Plus
  • Essential Comprehensive Elite
  • Essential Comprehensive Executive

Introducing Essential Med’s most popular plan

The Essential Plus plan is a comprehensive medical aid plan that offers a variety of benefits and coverage options.

It includes access to quality healthcare services, such as doctors, specialists and hospitals, a 24-hour helpline for members, competitive premiums and discounts for families, students and pensioners, and cover for hospital stays, emergency care, chronic medication, maternity care, and more.

The plan also allows members to select from different packages to customise their cover, such as the Essential Plus Hospital Plan which provides cover for hospital stays, and the Essential Plus Hospital Plus plan which provides cover for hospital stays and more. Additionally, the plan offers cover for a range of other services such as optometry, dentistry, complementary medicine, and fertility treatments.

Summary of benefits you’ll have access to

  • Access to quality healthcare services
  • 24-hour helpline for members
  • Competitive premiums
  • Discounts for families, students, and pensioners
  • Cover for hospital stays, emergency care, chronic medication, maternity care, and more
  • Ability to customize cover by selecting different packages
  • Access to a dedicated team of medical aid experts
  • Cover for optometry, dentistry, complementary medicine, and fertility treatments.

EssentialMed – Medical aid scheme

  • Product Medical Aid
  • Individual `cover
    A single health insurance product, simplifying the decision-making process for individuals.
  • Comprehensive Cover
    Comprehensive coverage for day-to-day healthcare needs, including visits to doctors, dentists, optometrists, radiology services, pathology tests, and medication.
  • Life Cover
    Life cover for dread diseases, permanent disability, and funeral expenses
  • Tailored Plans
    Tailored products for employers and groups, enabling companies to offer health insurance coverage that reduces absenteeism and makes them an employer of choice.

Benefits of EssentialMed

  • A wide network of contracted healthcare providers ensures that you have access to a vast selection of healthcare professionals and facilities.
  • Customisable health insurance plans allow you to select the benefits and coverage levels that best suit your specific requirements and preferences.
  • Plans are designed to be affordable and flexible, providing you with the opportunity to choose coverage options that fit within your budget 
  • You’re covered for in-hospital and out-of-hospital expenses related to accidents and emergency visits to a casualty room.

Comprehensive medical aid cover in just 8 easy steps

Applying for a medical aid plan with Essential Med is quick and easy. All you need to do is visit their website, select the plan that best suits your needs, and fill in the online application form.

Once your application has been submitted, one of their representatives will contact you to finalise the process.

  1. Visit the Essential Med website.
  2. Click the “Medical Aid” tab at the top of the page.
  3. Select your preferred plan from the options provided.
  4. Click the “Get Quote Now” or “Get Instant Quote” button.
  5. Fill out all the required fields on the form, including your name, contact details, and medical information.
  6. Review the provided quote and click “Accept Quote” if you wish to proceed.
  7. Enter your payment details if required.
  8. Apply and wait for a response from Essential Med.

If you're looking for a reliable and affordable medical aid provider, Essential Med may be the perfect choice for you. They provide a wide range of benefits including access to quality healthcare services and a 24-hour helpline for members.

They also offer competitive premiums and discounts for families, students, and pensioners. With their range of plans, they’re dedicated to providing excellent customer service and making sure their members are taken care of.

Claims are processed within 48 hours and support is readily available

Essential Med's claims process is quick and efficient, with most claims being processed within 48 hours. They also offer an online portal for members to submit and track their claims, as well as a 24-hour helpline to answer any queries.

Furthermore, they have a dedicated team of medical aid experts who are on hand to assist members with their claims and ensure they receive the care they need.

Documents required when applying with Essential Med 

These documents include your identity document, proof of address, and your bank details. You may also need to provide additional documents depending on your health status and the type of plan you are applying for.

Affordable premiums accessible to all South Africans

Essential Med is committed to providing quality medical cover that is affordable and accessible. They understand that medical aid is not something everyone can afford, so they strive to keep their premiums as low as possible.

They also provide a range of payment options, so you can choose the one that best suits your budget.

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EssentialMed is a trusted & reliable provider of medical aid

In our review, we found EssentialMed to be a company licensed to provide medical aid products and services, and is regulated under the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.

✅ EssentialMed is a registered and licensed insurance provider in South Africa: FSP 8447

EssentialMed Contact

Physical Address

  • Crossfire Place, 15 Gardner Williams Ave, Paardevlei, Somerset West Cape Town Western Cape 7130 South Africa
  • Get Directions

Opening Hours

  • Monday 08:00 – 17:00
  • Tuesday 08:00 – 17:00
  • Wednesday 08:00 – 17:00
  • Thursday 08:00 – 17:00
  • Friday 08:00 – 17:00
  • Saturday – Closed
  • Sunday – Closed