Frequently Asked Questions

Edcon will provide the mediBucks merchant with window stickers and counter stands to display the acceptance of Edgars, Jet, Legit and Boardmans cards at the practice. mediBucks will list the practice as a participating provider on the mediBucks Website and will provide the practice with marketing material that will indicate that the practice is a mediBucks merchant and that the practice can accept specific payments.

It takes 4 to 6 weeks to be activated as a mB merchant from the date mediBucks receives the signed agreements and supporting documents required.

A call centre service, weekdays between 08h00 and 17h00 Mondays to Fridays which can be contacted at:

011 591 8309
merchants@medibucks.co.za.

mediBucks merchants can also log a query on the mediBucks mediBucks.co.za.

As a mediBucks merchant you will have to sign 3 agreements:

1. The Edcon agreement which is an agreement between the practice and Edcon, with mediBucks as the conduit.
2. The SureCard account and EDO agreements are combined agreements between the practice, mediBucks and SureCard
3. The mediBucks claims, transactions and settlement agreement is concluded between the practice and mediBucks.

All of the above agreements are prepared for the service provider by mediBucks during the application process.

Yes, clinical rules will be applied on all pre-negotiated fixed fee for service claims via the practice management system against certain employer and insurance funds.

It is the responsibility of the practice to verify that the card holder matches the ID and the signature on the invoice.

Via the practice management system a patient gets loaded as a mediBucks patient. Claims against mediBucks and Edcon cards are then submitted in exactly the same way as to any other medical scheme. The practice will receive real-time confirmation stating that the transaction was accepted or declined. Approved transactions will be paid as per the settlement agreement with the practice and declined transactions can be re-submitted for an amount that falls within the available limits following a balance check by the patient (balance to be treated as a cash payment) or the entire rejected amount should be settled by the patient in a payment method of their choice.

Via the mediBucks secure portal the loading of a patient as a mediBucks patient is not required as a transaction and will not be treated as a claim but purely as a financial transaction. The practice will receive real-time confirmation stating that the transaction was accepted or declined. Approved transactions will be paid as per the settlement agreement with the practice and declined transactions can be treated as outlined above.

The practice may either create a second profile for the patient under mediBucks, which will enable the practice to submit full claims to either the medical scheme or to mediBucks as per the patient instruction/preference OR the practice may treat claims as cash transactions using the mediBucks portal to do the transaction. Note that the portal functionality is only available on one of the Full Spectrum mB merchant options.

As a claim can only be submitted once via most practice management systems the claim cannot be submitted to mediBucks for short-payments. Both upfront co-payments and medical scheme short payments can only be submitted to mediBucks for payment via the portal. Note that the portal functionality is only available on one of the Full Spectrum mB merchant options.

The card holder has easy access to check account balances and should not present a card as payment to the practice in the event of insufficient funds. If a card with insufficient funds be presented for payment the transaction will decline in real-time as with any bank debit or credit card with insufficient funds. If transactions are not submitted real-time the practice will have to treat the rejection in the same way they treat a medical scheme rejection.

Co-payments and or up-front deposits can be done prior to services being delivered but via the mediBucks banking portal only. Note that the portal functionality is only available on one of the Full Spectrum mB merchant options.

The transaction will be treated by mediBucks in the same way as a real-time transaction but, rejections will have to be treated by the merchant in the same way as a medical scheme rejection. If the practice does not have the ability or appetite to submit claims real-time they might consider the portal option for real-time transacting. Note that the portal functionality is only available on one of the Full Spectrum mB merchant options.

The practice will receive a remittance as with medical scheme payments. Portal transactions are treated as cash transactions with the ability to print a receipt. It also gives the practice the option to create a reference number for easy tracking from the mediBucks and Edcon transaction statements.

Edcon transactions will be settled once a month as per the Edcon trading calendar. The practice will receive this calendar every annum. mediBucks claims via the practice management system will be settled every two weeks. mediBucks portal transactions will be settled daily to a the merchant’s mediBucks account.

A once-off joining fee will apply towards registration, activation and the supply of material such as a window decals, counter stands and other marketing material and tools for the practice. The once-off joining fee amount depends on the mediBucks option selected by the practice. Click here for details on each option.

A fixed monthly fee will apply towards claims and transactions via the practice management system and portal plus a fixed transaction fee towards the switching and settlement costs per claim and/or transaction.

Transaction and claim fees are fixed at 2,5% + VAT and fixed monthly costs depend on the mediBucks option selected by the practice. Click here for details on each option.

EDO stands for Early Debit Order and within mediBucks it offers the functionality that a practice can arrange equal term payments on new or outstanding accounts from patients that cannot afford to settle an existing invoice or services still to be performed (on quotation) immediately or in one single payment. The term options for the practice and a patient are full payment at the end of the purchasing month or equal payments over 3 or 6 months.

The practice enters the patient details, including the bank details from where the payments will be collected, on the mediBucks portal, selects the payment amount, date and term and submit for processing to the supporting (SureCard) for confirmation on a successful or unsuccessful loading of the EDO.

The transaction cost for EDO is 4% of the amount with a R14,00 minimum amount per transaction.

The account also provides mediBucks with the ability to confirm and settle full or co-payment card transactions via a portal in real-time.

Full Spectrum mediBucks Merchants with EDO will receive marketing material to display in-practice which will indicate that they have this payment facility available. mediBucks will also make communication tools available like a A5 flyer (which can be printed by the practice) as well as an electronic mailer, which the practice can forward to their patients. A standard SMS can also be provided as part of the mini-communications campaign. * It is to be noted that these tools are only available on request.