Statutory health insurance
The various health insurance companies essentially offer uniform minimum benefits, the scope of benefits of the statutory health insurers is specified in the Social Code. The medical necessities are paid by all coffers - except for prescription fees and additional payments for outpatient and inpatient therapies. However, compare the contributions and services in detail - it is worth it.
-The basics Around 90 percent of all Germans are members of a statutory health insurance company. As an employee with a monthly salary up to 5,775 euros (or 69,300 euros per year / stand 2024), you must cover health insurance. If your income exceeds this limit at least one year or as a professional self-employed person you can switch to private health insurance. Even as an authorized civil servant, you are usually privately insured. Cash registers may charge additional fee Since 1. January 2015 initially pay the same contribution rate for their health insurance. This unit contribution is 14.6 percent of gross income. Employers and employees each bear half of this, i.e. 7.3 percent. However, this general contribution rate is not enough to cover the expenditure of the cash registers. The statutory health insurers may therefore charge an additional fee. The additional fee has been financed again since 2019, i.e. half of the employers and employees. If, for example, the cash register requires an additional fee of 1.0%, the employer retains 7.8% of the gross income as a share of employees and transfers this amount together with the fixed employer's share of 7.3 % plus the half of the additional contribution (0.5 %) in the health insurer. Your family is helpful The benefits of the statutory health insurers are almost identical. The medically necessary is made, and there are additional services such as costs for homeopathic treatments, for special health checks and much more, depending on the checkout. Your family members without or with only a low income are insured in your statutory health insurance company without contributions - unlike in private health insurance, which requires their own contribution for each family member.
-Free cash choice As an employee, you decide for yourself which statutory health insurance company you insure yourself. You have the choice between general local health insurance funds, replacement health insurance funds, company health insurance funds and guild health insurance insurance funds. Local health insurance funds and replacement companies are open to statutory insured persons from all over Germany. Some company and guild health insurance insurance companies only employees of certain companies and occupational groups, or limit their activities to certain regions by statute. With a higher additional contribution, you can cancel immediately As an insured person, you can easily change the statutory health insurance company, the regular notice period is two months to the end of the month. If the cash register charges an additional fee for the first time, increases the additional fee or lowers the premium paid, you also have a special right of termination and can even terminate within one month. The cash desk must inform you in good time about a change to the additional fee in such a way that you can switch to another statutory health insurer before the new contribution is due.
-Performance differences The basic benefits of statutory health insurers are largely the same. The medically necessary is paid by all coffers - except for the prescription charges to be paid by the insured person and additional payments for outpatient and inpatient therapies. However, expensive and particularly gentle treatment procedures are often reserved for private insurers' customers. The ticket offices offer different extras The extra services offered are particularly important for cash customers when it comes to deciding on a specific health insurer: In addition to basic medical care, many coffers also pay for acupuncture and naturopathy, health courses or special vaccinations. In addition, the statutory health insurers offer special voting rates - for example, pediatric rates without a practical fee and tariffs with premium refunds, if you do not use medical services for one year as an insured person.
-Use price differences now Since 2015, the statutory health insurance has had a general contribution rate of 14.6 percent of the gross salary, each of which employers and employees bear half of them. If a health insurance company does not come along with the money, it can impose an additional fee that employees and employers have to share. If the cash register collects this additional fee for the first time or increases the previous additional fee, you can immediately switch to another, cash register that is as cheaper as possible. Contribution only to the design limit The so-called sub-contribution limit applies when calculating contributions to statutory health insurance. Your contribution to statutory health insurance is not mostly calculated after this amount - even if you actually earn more. The contribution assessment limit is 5,175 euros per month in 2024, which corresponds to an annual gross income of 62,100 euros. Example: As a legally insured person, you earn 5,450 euros per month. Their cash register requires the general contribution of 14.6 percent up to the amount of the current design limit, that is 755.55 euros. This sum - plus any due (cash individual) additional contribution - will be retained by half of your gross salary.
-How to change You can switch to another statutory cash register if you have been a member of your previous health insurer for at least 12 months. The statutory notice period of two full months shall apply to the end of the calendar month after this month. Since 1. January 2021, the Federal Government simplifies the change of health insurance: To cancel, it is sufficient to submit a membership application to your new health insurance company, which will take over the termination of the previous health insurer. If your cash register collects an additional fee for the first time, increases the additional fee or restricts your benefits, you have a special right of termination, the 12-month binding period is not applicable.
-Supplement: Supplementary insurance Your statutory health insurance only pays basic medical care. If you want first-class services, you are best chosen as a health insurance patient for private health insurance. Design the additional protection according to your personal needs You can decide which benefits you secure in your supplementary health insurance as personally. Depending on the tariff, outpatient services (e.g. B. Visitors to the doctor, glasses, psychotherapy), dental services (e.g. Orthodontics, high-quality dentures) and services for hospital stays (e.g. One bed room, chief doctor treatment). Important: You can generally not use the services of your private medical supplementary insurance immediately after completion of the policy. You must expect waiting times of several months until your supplementary insurer pays expensive dentures or high-quality glasses. So check in time.
-Alternative: Private insurance Private health insurance offers many advantages. As an employee, you only have to be legally insured if you do not earn more than 5,775 euros per month (or 69,300 euros per year / seventy-five 2024). As soon as your income exceeds this limit for at least one year, you may switch to a private health insurer. This can be worthwhile, especially if you are healthy and do not have to cover insurance family members. Even if you cannot or do not want to switch to private individuals, you should not do without any increase in benefits: with private supplementary health insurance, you can significantly improve your medical care and adapt your insurance cover to your very personal needs.