Warning of fast cash point change

Cash change: BVA boss warns against panic reaction

25/11/2014

The Federal Insurance Office (BVA) has warned against the legal health insurance to change overdue in view of the entry into force of the new system of additional contributions. In the coming year, numerous funds will make an additional contribution.

The background is the reduction in the general contribution rates of the statutory health insurance from 15.5 to 14.6 percent. If the health insurance companies do not get along with it, they have to collect additional contributions in the future. „It is correct and important that the competition between the health insurance funds is also made via additional contributions from the individual insurers“, so Dr. Gaßner according to the press release from the BVA. This is the only way to stimulate health insurance companies to keep administrative expenses as low as possible and to exploit efficiency potential.
In this context, BVA boss Dr. Maximilian Gaßner to make the selection of health insurance based on criteria such as advice, service or additional statutory benefits and not only on the amount of additional contributions to make dependent.

Accordingly, there is no reason to rush the cash register to change. Anyone who has been registered for 18 months in a health insurance company can change them at any time at short notice. Dr. Gassner: „There is therefore no reason to panic at the end of the year.“ The AOK Saxony-Anhalt and the AOK Plus have already announced a contribution rate of 14.9 percent, which corresponds to an additional contribution of 0.3 percent. Both funds are not under the supervision of the BVA.

The Techniker Kasse had already announced "not to set their contribution rate for the new year under 15 percent" and the Bosch BKK announced "a rate of 15.2 percent," which corresponds to a rate of 0.3 percentage points less than before. However, most health insurers will "wait for the budget to be approved by BVA before setting a new contribution rate, the deadline for which is 10 December 2014." (Sb)