GEMS is committed to providing you with all the information you require so that you can make the best possible decisions about the healthcare cover of employees in your department.
Since its inception seven years ago, GEMS has continued to go from strength to strength. Today we are the second biggest and fastest growing medical scheme in South Africa with over 1.8 million beneficiaries under our cover in total. This phenomenal growth is largely due to the close attention being paid to member service and to meeting and exceeding the expectations of our members.
GEMS is affordable
Your employer may subsidise your GEMS contribution by up to 75%.
If your income is within salary levels 1 to 5 and you choose the Sapphire option, you could qualify for a 100% subsidy!
The subsidy limits you receive from your employer increase by medical price inflation (MPI) every year.
GEMS offers 'Big Scheme' security
GEMS is the biggest restricted medical scheme and the second largest scheme in South Africa, which means you can rest assured knowing your family's and your healthcare costs are in good hands.
For every R100 in member contributions, GEMS spends R95 on healthcare costs, compared to the industry average of R91.
But is not too big to serve its members
GEMS provides you with free face-to-face consultation service at your workplace.
You can ask for assistance in the language of your choice.
There are 18 walk-in centre in South Africa.
GEMS benefits are accessible
There are no longer late joiner penalties for main members who join for the first time and could never before afford medical cover. On other medical schemes, people who join later in life pay more in contributions.
You can cover your extended family. Your parents, grandparents, in-laws, siblings, nieces and nephews may join GEMS if they are financially dependent on you. Some of these family members would not be covered on other medical schemes.
No waiting periods for: Main members who join GEMS for the first time, Dependants who join at the same time as the main member, and Newborn babies and newly-adopted children added as dependants for the first time.
GEMS is there for you in an emergency
GEMS protects your funds through selective underwriting
Underwriting helps to protect the funds that are already in the Scheme through the application of waiting periods for certain categories of new membership.
Underwriting protects GEMS against anti-selective behaviour, fraud, waste and abuse, thereby protect your funds.
Unlike other medical schemes tat apply underwriting to all members, GEMS applies underwriting to the following categories of members only:
Main members who resign from GEMS with their dependants(without also resigning from the Public Service) and then re-join GEMS.
Dependants who resigned from GEMS and who are then re-registered by the main member at a later date.
Dependants who join GEMS on a different date from the main member (excluding new-born babies and newly-adopted children).
GEMS gives you value-added services across all benefit options
In-hospital prescribed minimum benefits (PMBs) are covered at 100%.
No co-payments when you make use of GEMS network providers.
No co-payments for medicine listed on the GEMS Formulary.
GEMS is committed to your health and wellness
- A workplace fitness programme designed to facilitate a stimulating and supportive environment in which you are encouraged to work towards health behaviour change.
- Yearly preventative care screenings.
- Disease-specific programmes to help you manage disease such as HIV and cancer.
GEMS offers state-of-the-art convenience
- Self-help kiosks - centrally-located at your local GEMS walk-in-centre, selected Government buildings as well as a pharmacy near you - bring personalised service to you at the touch of a button.
Read our 2018 Marketing brochure find out more about what GEMS has to offer.
