- The comparison portal Comparis expects an increase in basic health insurance.
- On average, health insurance premiums are expected to increase by six percent.
- Political decisions should allow the premiums to rise more sharply.
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Some health insurance companies are planning to increase premiums by ten percent. On average, however, the comparison portal Comparis expects an increase of six percent. This is after the premiums have already increased by 6.6 percent over the current year. In the long term, however, Felix Schneuwly, a health insurance expert who is quoted in the Comparis report, sees things calm down. In the coming years, cost growth for the Swiss is expected to level off at just under three percent.
Depletion of the reserve cushion led to a sharp increase in premiums
“Without the politically enforced reduction in reserves, the premiums would have only increased by around 2.5 percent per year and person in recent years and would currently continue to rise in this area,” Felix Schneuwly is quoted as saying. So that in the future not every cost fluctuation leads to a premium fluctuation, the health insurance expert is again in favor of a reserve cushion above the legal minimum.
Rising costs will also lead to rising premiums.
The Comparis forecast is based on an assessment by the comparison portal in cooperation with the ETH economic research center. Health care costs would therefore increase by 3.6 percent this year and by 3.1 percent next year, which will have a corresponding effect on health insurance premiums. In the years 2021 to 2023, the rising costs can be partly explained by the corona pandemic. A higher level of bureaucracy, as well as more psychotherapy or the implementation of the nursing initiative cost money.
BAG also speaks of higher premiums
A week ago, the Federal Office of Public Health FOPH published figures on rising healthcare costs. In the first quarter, prices rose by 3.4 percent.
“Increasing costs will also lead to increasing premiums,” said BAG Vice Director Thomas Christen. Christen could not yet estimate how high the health insurance premiums would rise. However, the first forecast by Comparis does not bode well for the Swiss.