BoT Elections

The Bestmed Medical Scheme 2024 Board of Trustees Election

As previously communicated to all members, the term of office of two (2) existing member-elected trustees, namely one (1) Employee member representative and one (1) Individual member representative, will come to an end at the 2024 Annual General Meeting (“AGM”). 

1. Composition of the Board of Trustees

In terms of the stipulations of Rule 18.1 of Bestmed Rules, the affairs of the Scheme shall be managed according to these Rules and the applicable legislation by a Board of Trustees (‘the Board”) consisting of not more than ten (10) persons, who are fit and proper to be trustees, and who shall be constituted as follows:

• A maximum of two (2) Employee Members of the Scheme who are nominated for election by the employee members and thereafter elected by all members of the Scheme; and
• A maximum of two (2) Individual Members of the Scheme who are nominated for election by the individual members and thereafter elected by all members of the Scheme; and
• One (1) Continuation/Retired/Widowed Member of the Scheme who is nominated for election by Continuation/Retired/Widowed members and thereafter elected by all members of the Scheme

2. The nomination process has been finalised

On 1 November 2023 and as stipulated in Rules 18.3.1 and 18.3.2 of Bestmed Rules, the Scheme’s principal members, registered in the “Employee” and “Individual” membership categories, were requested to nominate not more than one (1) other principal member of the Scheme to stand for election to fill the vacancies in their respective membership categories. The call for nominations closed at 23:59 on Wednesday, 31 January 2024.

3. Appointed Independent Electoral Body (“IEB”)

PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services (Pty) Ltd (“PwC”) has been appointed as the Independent Electoral Body (“IEB”) in respect of the following electoral processes:

• Vetting of nominations received from members.
• Overseeing the election processes.

4. IEB contact details

Kindly refer any election-related queries to PwC, the appointed IEB, as they are the only party that will respond to queries related to the electoral process. PwC’s contact details are:

• Tel: 012 429 0505 or 
• Email: za_bestmedelection2024@pwc.com. 

The IEB telephone and email contact details will only be operational between 08:00 and 16:30, Mondays to Fridays, excluding weekends and public holidays. Once the election has been completed, this number and email address will be closed.

5. The preliminary screening and vetting process has been finalised

The IEB vetted all nominations received within the specified time against the registered Bestmed Rules and the nomination criteria that were set out in the call for nominations in respect of the Employee Member Representative and Individual Member representative categories, respectively.

6. Voting process

In line with Bestmed Rule 18.3.4, if more candidates than the number for which there are vacancies in a membership category are so nominated, the Principal Officer shall provide all the members of the Scheme with ballot papers approved by the Board, on or before 20 April of the year in which the election takes place, for members to vote for the candidates. The ballot papers shall contain the names of all the nominated candidates in each membership category.

All Bestmed principal members, who are in good standing, may vote for candidates nominated to the Board of Trustees.

Voting will open on Friday, 19 April 2024 at 12:00 midday and close on Monday, 27 May 2024 at 16:00.

Members are afforded the opportunity to vote by using one (1) of the methods below:

• Voting method 1: Online voting; or
• Voting method 2: Postal, or email or drop-off.

Voting Method 1: Online voting 

Members who have opted to receive communications from the Scheme via email will receive an email consisting of the following: 

• Voting information / instructions and Trustees Election Candidate List including a summary of their curricula vitae as submitted by the candidates.
• A link to the PwC Online Voting Platform.
• A link to a video demonstrating how to vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform.

In order to access and vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform, each member is required to have a unique email address (meaning an email address not shared with another Bestmed Member) recorded on the membership data of Bestmed. Members who did not opt to receive communication from the Scheme via email, may still opt to vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform by contacting Bestmed and update their contact details.

To vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform, click on this link: https://onlinevoting.za.pwc.com.

Please read the voting instructions attached carefully and click here to be redirected to a video demonstrating how to vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform. 

Voting Method 2: Postal, or email or drop-off

Members who have opted to receive communication from the Scheme via the South African Post Office will receive a voting pack in the post. The voting pack consists of the following documents:

• Voting information / instructions and Trustees Election Candidate List including a summary of their curricula vitae as submitted by the nominated candidates.
• Bestmed ballot paper.
• Self-addressed return envelope for your completed ballot paper. 

Members who did not opt to receive communication from the Scheme via email, may still vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform by contacting Bestmed and updating their contact details (and most importantly, providing the Scheme with an email address).

After updating your contact details and receiving confirmation, you can vote using the PwC Online Voting Platform. Visit this URL to vote https://onlinevoting.za.pwc.com.

We look forward to your continued support and participation in the Bestmed Board of Trustees Election!

Downloads

Voting information/instructions and Trustees Election Candidate List including a summary of their curricula vitae as submitted by the candidates

Scheme Rules

All information regarding the 2024 benefit options and accompanying services including information in respect of the terms and conditions or any other matters is subject to prior approval of the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) and may change without notice having due regard to the CMS' further advice.