SA Post Office workers holding their breaths that medical aids will be reinstated

The 20,000 SA Post Office (SAPO) workers, their dependents and pensioners whose MediPos Medical Scheme cover was cancelled from October 1 as a result of the post office failing to make payments totaling R700m to the scheme, are anxiously waiting for news of their reinstatement.

On Friday, MediPos informed them the scheme had had to “revert to attaching SAPO’s bank account for about R60m for the recovery of the arrears”.

But according to the scheme, it is still waiting to receive those funds.

“We have been advised of an incorrect message circulating, informing members that SAPO has paid R60m to MediPos and that the suspension would be lifted,” the scheme said.

“Please note the sheriff has informed MediPos that the funds have not been received from the SAPO bank account yet. Once the sheriff confirms receipt of the funds into the sheriff's account,  the scheme will immediately lift the suspension of benefits and communicate the good news.”

Earlier this week, MediPos contracted members, asking them to pay their contributions “arrears” - this despite their payslips  stating the contributions had been paid.

“In order to have your suspension lifted you will be required to pay September’s contribution together with less than an additional two months contribution, which can be paid off as part of an agreed payment plan,” members were told.

“If you have not done so already we would encourage you to enter into a similar arrangement with the scheme in respect of the arrear debt.”

A Cape Town-based post office pensioner who suffers from dementia was told to pay her R4,653 “arrears” into Medipos’ bank account for unpaid contributions, according to her son-in-law.

She was asked to commit to a payment plan of about R517 a month for the next nine months on top of her current contribution of R3,102.

“The South African Post Office has been deducting medical aid contributions from their employees’ salaries and simply ran away with the money, amounting to a staggering R700m unpaid bill,” said  DA MP Dianne Kohler Barnard today.

“This is fraud on the most enormous scale.

“Every parliamentary option available to an MP has been utilised: members’ statements, questions to the minister, media statements and additionally, after a meeting with the Hawks, a nationwide investigation has been launched.”

Barnard said its fight for post office employees was not over.

“We are aware that there are other sums of money that haven’t been paid over, such as VAT, UIF and PAYE. We will continue our drive to get justice for the post office employees,” she said.

Mark Hyman, CEO of MediCheck, said he’d been getting calls this week from Medipos members who had been told their treatments were no longer covered by the scheme, including several who were undergoing dialysis treatments.

Kohler Barnard said she’d been receiving similar calls.

“One woman urgently needs chemotherapy but now has not benefits for it,” she said. “So many people are suffering because of this.”

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