2026/2027 Medical Aid Premium Increases: What You Need to Know

The 2027 Medical Aid increases haven't been announced yet, but if the last five years are any guide, they'll be right there in the queue with every other cost that creeps up while you're not looking. 

Now, this article does more than just tell you the annual weighted average increases. We’ve also taken a look at each scheme's annual increase compounded over five years. Why? Well you may notice that that scheme you've stayed with faithfully might be costing you a lot more than the day you signed up, especially in comparison with another scheme offering similar cover. 

Schemes usually confirm their new contributions towards the end of the year, which means right now is the sweet spot to start comparing plans in preparation for the new year.

Hippo’s quick bites: 

• 2027 Medical Aid premium increases haven't been announced yet

• Scheme increases have outpaced general inflation for years, thanks to rising hospital costs, specialist fees and shiny new medical technology

• Compounded over five years, some schemes' contributions have climbed nearly 60%

• The average increase your scheme announces isn't necessarily the one you'll pay, yours could be steeper

• Even with the Council for Medical Schemes' suggested guideline, the real increases sail well above it once utilisation gets added in

• Below are 2026’s contribution increases. 

Medical scheme contribution increases - 2026

Schemes usually make their announcements between September and December, with the new rates kicking in from January the following year. 

In 2026, scheme increases averaged around 8% across South Africa, with each scheme seeing the following:

Did you know that the figure your scheme proudly announces is actually an average across all of its plans? Not the exact increase you may experience. 

Your real increase depends on your Medical Aid plan. That’s why two people on the very same scheme can walk away with wildly different increases, and yours could easily sit above the headline number reported.

This is why it makes sense to compare multiple quotes on Hippo every year, and no, this isn't us nudging you to ditch a scheme you love. Even if you wouldn't dream of switching, a quick comparison can show you whether a different plan within your existing scheme gets you the cover you need (and actually use), for less. 

A view on five years of increases:

When you compound the annual increases over five years, the differences between medical schemes become far clearer than any single year lets on.

According to a compounded view Bonitas put together across the major schemes, Bonitas members have experienced the gentlest compounded increase since 2022, at 43.3%. Medshield, Discovery Health, KeyHealth, BestMed, Medihelp, Momentum and Fedhealth were spread out from roughly 44% to 60% compounded.

Please note that this analysis by Bonitas was supported by publicly published scheme average contribution increases, 2022–2026. Please contact individual medical schemes directly to confirm your specific plan's history.

Now, is this good or bad? For context, general inflation over the same 5 years has mostly sat below what schemes were increasing their contributions by (on average). Stats SA reported healthcare cost inflation at 5.1% in August 2024, against overall Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 4.4% that month, and that difference has held steady over the last five years. 

Why comparing Medical Aid quotes matters

These compounded figures are exactly why comparing your cover beats sticking with the same scheme each year. A plan that looked like a steal in 2022 could easily become one of the pricier options by 2027, purely from the way those increases add up each year.

A rising premium doesn't automatically buy you better cover. Checking in on your plan every year, instead of assuming your scheme is still the best fit for you, is how you can easily spot the shift before it costs you more than you bargained for.

So why do Medical Aid premiums keep climbing?

Hospital stays, specialist fees and fancy new medical technology all get pricier every year, and members continue to claim for chronic conditions and everyday health needs. Schemes are also legally bound to pay Prescribed Minimum Benefits in full, regardless of the plan you're on, which means that it is a fixed cost they have to fund. 

The Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) looks over all these cost drivers each year and issues formal guidance on how far increases should go. For 2022, schemes were told to keep it to a CPI-linked 4.2%. The guidance has tightened since seeing 4.4% plus reasonable utilisation estimates for 2025, and just 3.3% plus reasonable utilisation estimates for 2026, which was the lowest base figure the CMS has put forward in years.

So if the CMS recommends one number, why do the actual increases keep coming in higher? Fair question, and don’t worry, the answer isn't that schemes aren’t listening. 

A few things are at play:

• That CPI-linked figure is only the baseline. Schemes typically add "reasonable utilisation estimates" on top to account for how much members are likely to claim. 

• The CMS guidance is exactly that - guidance. Schemes can go above it if there are real cost pressures to justify the move, as long as their trustees can hand the registrar a business plan explaining why. 

• Every scheme has to hold a minimum level of reserves by law. If a scheme is running low it has to lift contributions faster to top them back up to whatever the CMS suggested that year. GEMS and Sizwe Hosmed are two recent cases, where both their solvency ratios slipped below the regulatory minimum.

• By law, contributions can only shift by benefit option, family size and income, never by your age or health. So the rising cost of an older, higher-claiming membership gets shared across everyone as a general increase, rather than pinned on the members driving it.

As of March 2026, contributions were climbing at CPI plus 4 to 5 percentage points, going by BusinessTech's reporting on the trend. The CMS also signed off on a new industry levy for the 2026/2027 financial year back in February 2026, a mandatory cost that, surprise surprise, eventually finds its way into member contributions too.

Medshield's principal officer, Kevin Aron, noted in August 2026 that medical inflation has typically run close to double general CPI, and that trying to pin increases to the CMS's CPI-linked figure would put a scheme's long-term survival at risk. He also flagged a widening "missing middle", people earning too much for public healthcare but not quite enough for comprehensive private cover, many now stuck on plans below R3,000 a month even when their health needs ask for more than those plans can give.

On top of all that, younger, healthier members are increasingly dragging their feet or skipping Medical Aid altogether, which shrinks the pool that normally helps subsidise older, sicker members and pushes premiums up further for everyone. Analysts have flagged this as a five-to-ten-year sustainability worry for the sector.

So what can you do about it?

Get an obligation-free quote comparison on Hippo.

It'll help you see:

• Whether your benefits still match how you actively use healthcare (day-to-day cover, chronic meds, hospital-only protection), and whether your plan still fits your family

• Whether you're forking out for benefits like maternity or international cover you barely touch, and whether your day-to-day benefits are quietly capped in ways you hadn't realised

• Whether a hospital plan, or a different benefit structure on the same scheme, could bring your monthly payment down

• How your scheme's compounded five-year increase measures against the rest before you write off switching

Ask your scheme for an annual benefit statement, so you can see exactly what you claimed for versus what you paid and bring that into the comparison.

More often than you'd think, keeping your level of cover and simply changing providers can save you real money and make a dent in your annual budget.

Consider Gap Cover as part of your healthcare portfolio

Medical Aid members often choose to add Gap Cover alongside their Medical Aid. 

Reason being is that medical schemes only reimburse 100% to 200% of tariffs, while specialists can charge anywhere from 300% to 500% of scheme tariffs. 

Gap Cover is a short-term insurance product, it is not a Medical Aid, and it works by covering the difference between what your scheme pays out and what a specialist or hospital charges you (up to an annual aggregate limit). 

By opting for Gap Cover, you can save (even more) in one of two ways:

1. Depending on your healthcare needs, you can go for a lower Medical Aid plan and pair it with a comprehensive Gap Cover plan, could save you money you don’t need to be spending. 

2. Or by just adding Gap Cover in general, you can  brace you for those unforeseen shortfalls. Saving you thousands in the long run. 

You can also compare Gap Cover quotes with Hippo, to help you find a better deal for your entire healthcare portfolio.

Stay informed, stay covered (and save) with Hippo

Above-inflation increases aren't about to reverse any time soon. You can't control what schemes charge, but you can control whether you're on the right plan for your health care needs and your budget.

Reviewing your cover every year, keeping tabs on what you're paying for and comparing schemes properly is how you keep that cost in check. 

On Hippo, you can pull multiple quotes from South Africa's top Medical Aid schemes and Gap Cover providers side-by-side, all before 2027's increases are announced. 

Find better medical cover at a better price today.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, medical or insurance advice. Hippo is a comparison site helping you evaluate quotes from trusted South African insurers. Always review policy details before making changes. Quotes are risk profile dependent and subject to annual review. No fees are charged for using Hippo’s comparison service. HAS (Pty) Ltd and HCS (Pty) Ltd are authorised FSPs. Terms and conditions apply.