Umvuzo Health targets brokers to join its growing distribution network

Umvuzo Health has launched the lowest cost full medical aid option at R490 per month which is set to disrupt the industry and give comprehensive access to employees earning R3,850 or less per month.

Called Activator, this option gives employees earning the minimum wage access to private healthcare services and facilities, providing members with the same level of care as people in far higher income brackets.

Alan Fritz, Director: Sales and Distribution at Umvuzo Health, comments, “We are the only medical scheme that can bring previously uncovered lives into the mainstream private healthcare environment. We believe that this sector is totally untapped and has huge potential, which is verified by the great interest in our Activator option since we recently launched it at an event in Johannesburg.” 

Umvuzo Health changed the face of the industry when they registered with the Council of Medical Schemes in 2004 and over the past decade has established itself as a scheme where 72% of their membership base has never been on a medical aid before.

With a full range of five medical aid options to suit members’ requirements, including the latest Activator, Umvuzo Health is in the process of implementing a full distribution strategy, which they embarked on in 2015 when Alan Fritz joined the scheme and set up a fully fledged sales and distribution department.

According to Fritz, the scheme now has about 50 active broker houses that joined their network and service 85% of their clients nationally. “We offer support to our active brokers in the network, which includes annual accreditation, regular visits by broker consultants to assist with queries and requests, delivery of membership cards, regular communication and wellness days and member gifts, reporting, assistance with presentations, proposals, comparisons, and quotes.”

 Fritz says that they believe in allowing the broker to focus on what their core strength is, which is managing the client relationships. “We, through our key account management team, focus on servicing the client and the members, as no one understands our members like we do. We have found this to be a mutually beneficial working arrangement with our broker network as this allows all parties to focus on what they are good at, to the benefit of the member,” he adds.

The scheme, which is restricted to employer groups and their employees, is self-administered, which means that the bulk of members’ premiums go towards the benefit of the members.  According to Fritz, the scheme has a strong history and track record of working with organised labour and assisting client companies to reduce the rate of absenteeism in the workforce.

 Examples of corporate clients include Kumba Resources (Anglo American), Assmang mines (Blackrock, Beeshoek and Khumani), Clover SA, Simba (Pepsico) Edcon, Pick ’n Pay, JD Group, Sun International, Lonmin Platinum, Glencore Mines, Sibanye Gold, Goldfields, Thari Bus Services and Sanparks, to name a few, mostly in the mining, food, steel and retail sectors.