PKV business figures Increased costs and contributions

PKV business figures: increased costs, increased premium income. The PKV Federal Association presented the new business figures of its members.

The private health insurance (PKV) suffer from the cost increases in the health system, but at the same time were able to gain significant members and therefore look optimistic about the future. This was announced by the PKV-Verband when the results of its members were published on Thursday in Berlin.

The private health insurance association (PKV) has announced the figures of its member companies for the year 2009 and for the first half of 2010. They show that the cost pressure in the health service also causes problems for private health insurance. However, as part of the support provided by the health reform of the black and yellow federal government, private insurers could also look forward to a significant increase in membership.

PKV insure almost 9 million members
According to the PKV Association, the number of members in private health insurance increased to 8.86 million fully insured persons by the end of 2009, with a net gain of 171,600 people. In contrast, only 90,300 new private insurance companies were registered in 2008. The PKV-Verband emphasized that the enormous increase in new customers was mainly due to one „off effect“, triggered by the effective January 1, 2009 „Duty to insure“, is due. Thousands of hitherto uninsured have taken out private health and long-term care insurance, according to the statement of the private health insurer. The private insurers are hoping for further positive effects from the simplified switch from legally insured persons to private health insurance. According to this, for example, the existing waiting period of three years will be abolished so that insured persons can switch more quickly from statutory to private insurance. The private health insurance companies are hoping for further positive effects from the tax deductibility of the insurance premiums, which has been in force since the beginning of the year.

Growing number of supplementary insurance
In the field of supplementary insurance, private health insurance also enjoyed a very positive development. Thus, in the course of the prohibition of supplementary insurance in the statutory health insurance (SHI) by the black and yellow federal government, the number of private supplementary insurance in 2009 increased by almost half a million to 21.48 million. In particular, supplementary long-term care insurance was in high demand last year, with an increase of approx. 14 percent to a total of 1.5 million. The trend continued in the first half of 2010, with the number of private supplementary insurances increasing by a further 77,000. 16.12 million of insured in the field of supplementary insurance were health insurance patients, for example, wanted to provide additional benefits for outpatient treatment, optional services in the hospital or dental care, said the PKV Association.

Rising contribution income in private health insurance
Due to the growing number of members, private health insurance companies also recorded a considerable increase in premium income. According to the private health insurers, private health insurers paid some 31.5 billion euros in health insurance and long-term care insurance contributions last year, an increase of 3.8 percent over the previous year. The majority of the contributions was generated with 29.39 billion euros in the health insurance sector (plus 3.6 percent compared to 2008) but also the long-term care insurances gave the companies substantial premium income of 2.07 billion euros (plus 5.3 percent compared to 2008). For 2010, the PKV Association expects comparably good figures. The premium income is estimated at € 33.36 billion, with health insurance funds expected to account for € 31.24 billion and long-term care insurance for € 2.12 billion.

Services cost the PKV considerably more
Although private insurers can look forward to a significant increase in premium income, insurance companies are simultaneously worried about rising benefits. Thus, private health insurance had to bear 4.7 percent more costs last year than in the previous year. The services of its 8.86 million members cost the PKV according to the association a total of 21.1 billion euros in 2009. Health insurance benefits increased by 4.6 per cent to 20.45 billion euros, and in the care insurance sector by 8.1 per cent to 667.7 million euros. For the year 2010, the private health insurance association expects insurance costs of 22.07 billion euros, with 21.33 billion euros expected to be due for health care and 740 million euros for long-term care insurance. The private health insurance association complained that this cost explosion of benefits was well above the general price increase of 0.38 percent.

Basic rate is again criticized
That the rising costs in the health system and the private health insurance will reach, was predictable and shows only that the private health insurance is subject to the same financial developments as the legal insurer. However, the private health insurance companies still have a considerable advantage over the statutory insurance: they can choose their customers and determine the contribution rates themselves, so that they can absorb the cost pressure of the health services reasonably. The basic tariff, which the private health insurance company already has to offer according to the will of the legislator in 2009, in order to be able to offer private persons, who have lost their insurance coverage, a possibility to return to the respective insurance, is an exception here. Because the base rate must correspond in minimum duration and scope of the regulation in the statutory health insurance. In other words, the scope of benefits should correspond to the benefits catalog of the statutory health insurance and surcharges due to an increased health risk may not be levied. In addition, the contributions are limited to the maximum amount of the SHI.

Increased demand and prices for health services
Due to its subsidy needs, the basic tariff of the private health insurance association is criticized again sharply, with the information that 18,200 members are insured with a base rate. With a total number of almost 9 million customers, the base rates are likely to have a marginal impact on the cost of services. Particularly since, according to recent media reports, the coverage of numerous services in the base rate is not covered and the insurance coverage was rated significantly worse than the offers of the SHI. A much greater share of over-insurance benefits is likely to be driven by growing demand and rising health care prices. So sets the PKV Association on one „Contractual competence with all service providers“, to increase the impact on quality, quantity and prices of health services and to keep cost increases under control. The PKV receive support again from the direction of the black-yellow federal government or the Federal Minister of Health, Philipp Rösler (FDP). For example, private insurers will in future also benefit from discount agreements with pharmaceutical manufacturers, which were previously reserved for statutory health insurance.

Age provisions reach 145 billion
The private health insurance association is also optimistic about age provisions. In 2009, for example, the Germans contributed just under € 11 billion to the aging provision, with around € 9.7 billion going to health insurance and € 1.3 billion to long-term care insurance. According to the PKV association, both insurance branches now have over € 145.32 billion in old-age provision (around € 125 billion in health insurance, € 20 billion in long-term care insurance). (Fp, 19.11.2010)

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