SHARE
COPY LINK

HEALTH

Coronavirus: Austria to give all hospitality workers 100 euros

Calling it a ‘lockdown bonus’, all workers in the gastronomy and hospitality sectors in Austria will be given 100 euros for November.

Coronavirus: Austria to give all hospitality workers 100 euros
A closed restaurant in Salzburg. Photo: BARBARA GINDL / APA / AFP

The payments will be available to full-time workers as well as “part-time employees and apprentices”, said Berend Tusch of the Austrian Tourism Department.

Initially, the money was set to be paid only to workers who would normally receive tips as a means of compensation. Bars and restaurants are not allowed to open for November, other than to serve take away food and drink.  

Now however the money will be available to all workers in the hospitality and hotel industry

There is also provision for more payments to be made should Austria’s shutdown extend beyond November. 

“In the event that the lockdown should be extended beyond November, the conclusion of a further supplementary collective agreement has already been agreed between the social partners,” said Tusch.

Funding for businesses

The money is part of a package provided by the Austrian government to sectors impacted by the shutdown. 

Businesses impacted by the shutdown will be entitled to claim 80 percent of their usual sales from the government.

The amount they are paid will be determined with reference to the sales they made in November 2019. 

Companies making a request will not need to work out the number themselves. Finance Minister Gernot Blümel said the government would make the calculation based on the corresponding amount submitted in taxation documents from last year. 

Austrian media has called the plan “extremely favourable” to business owners, not least because many other expenses associated with staff wages will also be paid by government under the AMS offset scheme.

Under the scheme, employers can set their employees wages to zero and have them paid by the government under the short-time working scheme. 

The cost of the scheme is expected to be between 1.5 and two billion euros in November.

Importantly, the money is available not only to businesses who have been forced to close as a result of the measures. 

Other business – i.e. restaurants which now operate only for takeaway – can also access the funding. 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

HEALTH

When can I ask for reimbursement for medical expenses in Austria?

If you visit an 'elective doctor' in Austria or go for certain procedures and examinations, you might have to pay the costs upfront. But when will your statutory health insurance reimburse you?

When can I ask for reimbursement for medical expenses in Austria?

Austria’s health system can seem complicated. Most people are insured by statutory insurance companies, ensuring they receive quality care for free in the country. 

However, there may be times when you want to go the private route – be it for specific examinations, or if you are searching for a particular specialist or, most commonly, if you just can’t or won’t wait to get an appointment via the public system. As the number of public doctors drops, more and more people have reached out to the “elective” doctors, or to private laboratories for certain exams instead of waiting weeks in the public system.

In those cases, the public health insurance funds often reimburse your expenses, at least partially. 

READ ALSO: Six things to know about visiting a doctor in Austria

When can I ask for reimbursement?

There are several cases when you can be reimbursed by Austria’s largest health insurance company, the ÖGK. These include:

  • Private or elective doctors: Elective doctors do not have a contract with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK). You will therefore be treated there as a private patient and must initially pay for the treatment yourself. In most cases, ÖGK will reimburse part of the costs.
  • Dental Health: In addition to conservative dental treatment and dentures, the ÖGK dental services also include jaw adjustments (braces).
  • CT, MRI and x-rays: Computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and X-rays are “diagnostic imaging procedures”. The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers the costs if the examination is carried out at an authorized institute.
  • Therapists: the ÖGK will cover costs for speech therapy, physio therapy and psychotherapy, among others. You can read more HERE.
  • Midwives: Midwives support women during pregnancy, during childbirth and in the initial period afterwards. The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers certain costs for the midwife.
  • Hospital stays: Persons insured with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) can receive outpatient or inpatient treatment in certain hospitals throughout Austria. The fund will not cover any special fees that are incurred for accommodation in “special class” (some hospitals offer private rooms as special class, for example). For medically necessary treatment in hospitals with which there is no contractual relationship,  ÖGK currently pays a daily care cost allowance of € 399.97, but not more than the actual costs incurred.
  • Medical aids and medication: The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers the costs of medical aids and aids such as hearing aids, diabetes supplies or bandages if you have a doctor’s prescription for them. The ÖGK also covers medication costs, but you need a prescription from a doctor. 

READ ALSO: How much can you expect to pay for private healthcare in Vienna?

How much will I get?

The reimbursement does not cover the whole cost. Once the reimbursement is approved, you will get 80 percent of what the ÖGK would have paid to the public system. This is not the same as 80 percent of your invoice.

The insurance fund doesn’t always approve invoices, it will evaluate the need and set up limits (so, you won’t get a refund on every doctor’s visit if you go to the same specialist type in a short period, for example). Particularly if you plan on a big expense, it’s worth it to check with the fund beforehand if they would cover the private costs.

How can I claim reimbursement?  

You first need to obtain receipts for all medical expenses, including doctor’s invoices, hospital bills, and pharmacy receipts. You’ll also need to gather payment confirmation. Then, you submit this information as a claim request on the website of your insurance company. With ÖGK, the link is HERE.  

You then wait for the processing time, which can take up to several weeks. If your request is approved, you’ll receive the money back straight to the bank account you have in your account details on the insurance website. 

READ ALSO: Will my Austrian health insurance pay for medical expenses abroad?

What if I have private insurance?

Most private insurance in Austria work with statutory companies. You’ll follow the same exact path. Once you get confirmation of how much the public insurance will reimburse you (or if it won’t reimburse you), you can then send all these documents to your private insurance. They will pay the difference between what you got from the public company and what you paid in private healthcare.

SHOW COMMENTS