AOK study PKV contributions are rising steadily

AOK predicts massive premium increases in private health insurance

04/05/2012

According to a study of the Federal Association of the General Local Health Insurance AOK, the approximately nine million private insured persons in Germany must expect massive increases in individual private health insurance tariffs. The Federal Association of Private Health Insurance (PKV) defends itself against the study results and accuses the AOK, even too little for the financial security.

Already at the turn of the year, the contributions were increased by an average of between 20 and 60 percent according to the consumer centers. A study of the AOK now comes to the conclusion that insured members of the private funds will soon have to reckon with much higher contributions. Reason for this, according to the financial experts, the rising costs in the health system. Every insurer would have to demand from each private insured person nearly 2700 Euro per annum, so that the financial situation would remain stable over the next 40 years.

According to the study, the costs in the healthcare system are rising due to the ever increasing expenditure. Clinics, doctors and pharmaceutical manufacturers are demanding ever higher budgets. On the other hand, as a result of the ongoing financial crisis, capital investments are providing too low interest rates to cover the expenditure side. Accordingly, the insurance companies would have to increase the revenue side at the expense of the insured in order to continue to be able to persist. Meanwhile, the Federal Association of AOK has the information in the magazine „star“ confirmed, in which the results were reported in advance.

Bundesverband der PKV defends itself against the study
The private health insurance companies resist the study. The spokesman of the Private Health Insurance Association (PKV), Stefan Reker, in turn, accused the AOK, „even no provision for the increasing life expectancy and the rising health expenses of their insured“ to build. By contrast, private health insurance has around 150 billion funded pension plans. The AOK could not show such a reserve. In addition, the maximum contribution of the AOK in the last 40 years has increased enormously. Spending will therefore climb further up here, according to Reker.

At the end of last month, the media landscape reported that private health insurance contributions had almost doubled in recent years. According to the Federal Health Office, private rates rose between 2000 and 2010 by an average of 74.6 percent. The federal chairman of the AOK demanded in view of these numbers, the federal government should the PKV in the current variant „do not artificially keep alive“. (Sb)

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Health insurance: What changes 2016351a2cc0b08c03> Image: Ronny Richert