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HEALTH INSURANCE

Health insurance: Vaud to cap premiums at 10 percent of income

In a year that has seen heated debate over the issue of rising healthcare costs in Switzerland, the canton of Vaud has added its voice by introducing new subsidies designed to take the sting out of compulsory health insurance premiums.

Published: 28 August 2018 20:30 CEST
Health insurance: Vaud to cap premiums at 10 percent of income
File photo: Depositphotos

Swiss people fund around a third of all the country's healthcare costs though a compulsory insurance system and the cost of this obligatory insurance has shot up twice as fast as GDP and wages since 1996. 

To ease the financial strain on households, Vaud is now introducing a cap on health insurance. As of September 1st, this cap will be set at 12 percent of household income with anyone paying more than this entitled to a government subsidy. From January 1st this cap will be reduced to 10 percent.

Read also: How can health insurance in Switzerland be made cheaper?

Outlining the new scheme, the canton provided the example of a family with two children, an annual household income of 90,000 francs and a health insurance bill of 1,080 francs a month (or 14.4 percent of income).

The above family would receive a subsidy of 180 francs from September 1st. This subsidy would then rise to 330 francs at the beginning of next year.

Thousands of people are expected to benefit from the changes.

Around 36 to 39 percent of health insurance holders in Vaud are set to receive subsidies in 2019, the canton said in a statement. In 2017, that figure was 29.9 percent.

The cost of the move is forecast to be between 50 and 60 million Swiss francs a year for the canton. This is higher than original estimate.

But the head of the Department of Health and Social Services in Vaud, Socialist politician Pierre-Yves Maillard, has achieved his political goal of providing financial relief to residents of the canton in general and the middle class in particular, Swiss news agency SDA reported.

Developments in Vaud are likely to be closely watched around the country. In the canton of Geneva, left-wing politicians have already called for a similar move while at the federal level, the centre-right Christian Democratic Party (CVP) has called for the brake to be applied on soaring premiums. These are expected to rise again in 2019, Swiss comparison website Comparis said in a report published in June.

People eligible for the new subsidy in Vaud, or who feel they may be eligible, need to apply. This can be done online (in French) or by visiting offices of the cantonal health and social services department (DSAS).

Read also: Health insurance 'must pay childcare costs of blacklisted patient'

 

 

HEALTH INSURANCE

Could glasses and contact lenses soon be covered by Swiss health insurance?

The Swiss health system is ranked among the best in the world, but some essentials, like glasses, aren't automatically covered by health insurance. That could soon change, however

Published: 16 May 2024 15:06 CEST
Could glasses and contact lenses soon be covered by Swiss health insurance?

Green Party Federal Councillor Katharina Prelicz-Huber revealed in an interview with newspaper 20 Minuten this week that the Federal Parliament had tabled a motion to include prescription glasses and contact lenses in Switzerland’s mandatory health insurance scheme. 

Prelicz-Huber stated: “The purpose of compulsory health insurance is to provide the services you need to get or stay healthy,”

The motion forms part of the legislation that will be voted on during the 2024 summer session of the Federal Council. 

Proposed changes 

According to Switzerland’s peak optician body, 4 in 5 Swiss wear glasses or contact lenses at some point. 

It’s no surprise that statistics repository, Statista, projects the Swiss eyewear industry to be worth €1.37 billion by 2028. 

Currently, glasses and contact lenses are covered for up to 180 francs for children until age eighteen, if they are proscribed by a doctor.

Adults can also claim money back for glasses and contact lenses – however, they must be suffering from one of a short list of specific conditions such as keratoconus – where the cornea is distorted – or severe myopia, otherwise known as near-sightedness.

They must also have been specifically prescribed them by a doctor or optometrist. 

Otherwise, supplemental optical insurance must be purchased in Switzerland to ensure you can recoup the cost. 

Under the Green Party proposal, glasses, contact lenses, and other visual aids would be covered, regardless of age. 

Rising premiums prompt opposition 

Not everybody agrees with the proposal. 

The right-wing SVP has already spoken out against it, with Federal Councillor Diana Gutjahr arguing: “If we seriously want to slow down the burdensome and constantly rising health costs for the benefit of the population, we [must] show the political will not to constantly expand the benefits of compulsory health insurance.”

A spokesman for the the health insurance advocacy group Santesuisse, Matthias Müller, echoed Gutjahr, claiming that insurance constitutes “financing for extraordinary events such as illness.”

“If almost everyone benefits from a certain service, it is no longer an insurance benefit.”

A date for the vote has yet to be announced. 

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