Discovery Failing a Transplant Patient When It Matters Most

I am a chronic kidney disease (CKD) patient in need of a kidney transplant. After enduring a long, exhausting, and emotionally taxing process to complete all required tests for both myself and my living donor, Discovery Health has been nothing short of unhelpful.

Discovery approved my living donor’s medical tests under my medical aid as an ex gratia payment, and an official approval letter was issued. Despite service providers submitting claims exactly as stipulated in this approval letter, Discovery has continuously failed to process these claims since 04/10/2025.

Every call to Discovery results in a different excuse. First, it’s the ICD-10 codes that are supposedly incorrect. Then it’s the dependent code. This is despite the fact that providers are following Discovery’s own approval documentation precisely. The goalposts keep moving.

As a result, I am now facing being handed over for outstanding medical accounts — something Discovery seems completely indifferent to. The stress this has caused during an already incredibly difficult period of my life is unacceptable.

My most recent interaction was with Sinethemba Mxele, who repeated the same script about incorrect dependent and ICD-10 codes, with no empathy and no initiative to resolve the issue. There was no attempt to contact the service providers directly, no ownership of the problem, and no acknowledgment of my frustration. Just deflection.

Client service, as it currently stands, appears to be non-existent. The level of service is honestly laughable for a medical aid of Discovery’s size and reputation.

Discovery needs to fix its internal systems and processes and start genuinely supporting its members — especially those facing life-altering medical situations like organ transplants — instead of sending them from pillar to post.

This experience has been deeply disappointing.