Electronic health card unsettled many

Facts: New electronic health card officially replaces old insurance card at the beginning of the year

03/01/2014

Since 1 January 2014, the old insurance card has had its day. Since then, patients have to present the new electronic health card (eGK) at the doctor's visit. However, insured persons who have not yet applied for an electronic health card are also entitled to medical expenses. Nevertheless, the GKV-Spitzenverband advises all stragglers to take care of the new card with photo at their health insurance as quickly as possible. Because doctors are entitled under certain conditions to make a private bill.

Old insurance card is no longer officially valid
Since the beginning of the new year, patients have to present the new electronic health card at the doctor's visit. The old insurance card has officially lost its validity. If you are not yet in possession of the new card, you are still entitled to the reimbursement of medical treatment. „However, we do not want people who, for whatever reason, only have an old health insurance card after the turn of the year, to have a problem with the treatment in the doctor's office ", explains Florian Lanz, spokesman of the GKV-Spitzenverband. „Therefore, we have agreed with the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians that the doctors can temporarily accept the old insurance card and also settle their benefits accordingly with the health insurance companies.“ To what extent the individual practices made use of it and the old card still accepted, but probably handled differently.

The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) informs, however, that insured persons who have not yet received an electronic health card, „initially use the old health insurance card as proof of insurance“ can. The card is still valid and can be read in the practices.

Entitlement to benefits exists even without the new electronic health card
Nevertheless, the GKV-Spitzenverband advises all latecomers to apply for the electronic health card as quickly as possible at their health insurance. Although there is a claim to performance without the new card, „the procedure of the proof and the bill with the physician are thereby however impeded“. In principle, this applies to the previous regulation, according to which physicians are entitled to provide a private invoice to the legally insured person, if he can not present a valid electronic health card or other proof of his health insurance over the claim for benefits within ten days after the doctor's visit. But: „If an electronic health card valid at the time of treatment is presented to the doctor by the end of the quarter in which the treatment was administered, or if by the end of the quarter an insured person's existing entitlement to benefits at the time of treatment has been demonstrated by the competent health insurer , the doctor is obliged to refund the private compensation“, so Lanz.

According to information from the GKV-Spitzenverband, 67 million legally insured persons (about 95 percent of all insured persons) already have the electronic health card. Very likely in the course of the summer, but no later than the end of September, the conditions have been created, „that a statement on the old health insurance card no longer comes to fruition, "said the association.

Before the introduction of the electronic health card it shook criticism
Before the introduction of the electronic health card, it hailed plenty of criticism, mainly because of the immense costs, which are so far estimated at just under 730 million euros and which - as many critics complain - without understandable benefits for the insured.

Above all, the KBV criticized the fact that hardly anything was left of the original idea of ​​achieving improved communication between doctor and patient through the card. Rather, it is a cash-centered telematics infrastructure for, among other things, insured person data management. Another point of criticism concerns the security of data storage. (Ag)