Medical Schemes Act, 1998 (Act No. 131 of 1998)RegulationsRegulations in terms of the Medical Schemes ActChapter 2 : Administrative requirements4. Administration of a medical scheme |
| 1) | The rules of a medical scheme which are sent to the Registrar and any amendment thereto must comply with the following requirements: |
| a) | they must be printed in at least 1,5 spacing and a font of at least 12 on A4 paper of at least 80 grams; |
| b) | they must be printed on one side of the paper only, with a margin of at least 30 mm on the left side and at least 25 mm at the top and bottom and on the right side; |
| c) | headings and subheadings must be printed in bold print; |
| d) | no underlining must be made in the document containing the rules; and |
| e) | the document referred to in paragraph (d) must at the beginning contain a detailed table of contents of the rules, with references to the relevant page numbers. |
| 2) | A medical scheme that provides more than one benefit option may not in its rules or otherwise, preclude any member from choosing, or deny any member the right to participate in, any benefit option offered by the medical scheme, provided that a member or a dependant shall have the right to participate in only one benefit option at a time. |
| 3) | A medical scheme may in its rules provide that a member may only change to any benefit option at the beginning of the month of January each year, and by giving written notice of at least three months before such change is made. |
| 4) | A medical scheme must not in its rules or in any other manner structure any benefit option in such a manner that creates a preferred dispensation for one or more specific groups of members or to provide for the creation of ring-fenced nett assets by means of such benefit option or to transfer accumulated pro rata net assets of such option to another medical scheme. |