Health insurance lowers contributions for older people

Debeka announces stable contributions

09/24/2012

The private health insurance Debeka wants to lower the contributions for its approximately 100,000 elderly insured at the turn of the year. In addition, the contribution rates for all other private insured should remain stable, as the insurer in Koblenz announced.

The insurance company „Debeka“ is one of the largest German providers in the private health insurance sector, with around 2.2 million private insured persons. As the company announced, the contributions are not adjusted as in the majority of competitors. „Debeka will keep its contributions stable in 2013 for its members“, said in a statement from the insurer. In addition, the contribution payments for the approximately 100,000 older members are to fall. Especially seniors have to fight with increasing contributions in old age, because in private health insurance the contributions are not based on income.

According to own data one wants to be market leader in the private health insurance „Statements by political opponents of the system, which claim again and again, the contributions of the insured would be outgrowing and the PKV is therefore no longer sustainable“ refute. Reason for the „Post stability“ be one „sustainable and solid tariff policy with only a moderate rise in insurance benefits“. CEO Uwe Laue said: „Already today, we can say that almost all insured persons will benefit from stable health insurance contributions in the coming year. "It can even be assumed, „that we can slightly reduce the contributions for around 100,000 elderly insured persons. I am curious how the media reacts to this development. If massive contributions adjustments in private health insurance are again reported, this is definitely not the case for around a quarter of all private insured persons in Germany, namely the Debeka members.“ The chairman of the executive board did not specify the exact amount of contributions for seniors.

Stable contributions and contribution cuts as a political statement
With his criticism, Laue alludes to the media coverage of PKV that has been ongoing for several months. In his opinion, tariff increases in some competitors would be transferred to the whole industry and „to be stylized“. However, such adjustments would affect only a few members of the total of nine million private insured in Germany. „It is time to clear up with common prejudices and stereotypes. With its accumulation of reserves for old age, private health insurance is much better prepared for demographic change than the GKV, which has no reserves for it. Against this background, private health insurance is more than ever an indispensable part of the German health care system“, so Laue on.

Some insurers have already announced contribution increases
Meanwhile, several providers have already announced in August to increase the contributions to the turn of the year. Above all so-called are affected „newcomers rates“. For example, Gothaer or Hallesche are planning to double-digit premium increases in some tariffs. To this day, the majority of the industry is silent about premium adjustments, so as not to baffle customers. Industry experts, however, assume that the majority of private funds will make more contribution increases. The introduction of unisex tariffs will, according to the Consumer Protection Journal „Finanztest“ „the contributions increase on average“. Because the tariffs for women may not be more expensive than those for men, the providers need to recover the missing extra charges in the tariffs again. (Sb)

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Picture: Ronny Richert