Further increasing reserves of health insurance companies

Growing surplus in the health insurance billions

22.11.2012

The financial reserves of the health insurance continue to increase. According to media reports, the surplus at the replacement and local health insurance has again increased by one billion euros. The figures for the company and guild health insurances were not yet available, but let us expect a similarly positive development. Accordingly, the abolition of the practice fee decided by the Bundestag at the beginning of November is unlikely to pose any particular financial burden for health insurance funds.

Both the medical profession and the pharmacist associations had complained in the fee dispute with the statutory health insurance in view of the billions surplus in the insurance companies that health insurance funds are not savings banks, but should invest the excess funds in the care of patients. The quarterly figures released by the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" (FAZ) of the replacement health and local sickness funds and the Knappschaft are likely to act like water on the critics' mills. Because the surplus of the above-mentioned health insurance in the third quarter of 2012 again increased by about one billion euros, reports the "FAZ", citing circles of health insurance companies.

Surplus of the health insurance once again increase by one billion euros
In the first half of 2012, statutory health insurances increased their financial reserves by 2.7 billion euros to a total of 21.8 billion euros. The allocations from the health fund introduced in 2009 to the individual health insurances were therefore significantly higher than the expenditures of the insurances. This drastic surplus prompted the policy to decide to abolish the practice fee. As of next year, insured persons will no longer have to pay ten euros per quarter for doctor visits. The health insurance companies will lose about two billion euros in revenue per year in this way, but given the recorded surpluses, this is unlikely to bring any existential threat to health insurance. In fact, a positive financial development in the coffers is also to be expected for the year 2013. Especially since the Health Fund itself will accumulate by the end of the year, according to the circle of the statutory health insurance € 12 billion surplus.

Demands of doctors and pharmacists in view of the surpluses of health insurance companies
In the case of service providers in the healthcare system, there are increasing demands for a clear adjustment of fees in view of the surpluses of statutory health insurance. Thus, the doctors have already a hefty fee dispute with the health insurance behind him, which ended in an arbitration award and the pharmacy is currently in the dispute with the insurance on the appropriate amount of compulsory rebate to be paid. So far, the health insurance companies have shown little reluctance in the negotiations, presumably also because many of those responsible still remember the financially extremely difficult past years. Such high surpluses are a completely new experience for her.

Health insurance continues in austerity?
It also remains to be considered that with particularly generous concessions by the health insurance funds to the service providers, the reserves would be used up relatively quickly. In addition, the health insurance companies expect significant cost increases in the coming years and decades in the course of demographic change and therefore hardly seem ready to distribute the current surpluses completely to the service providers of the health system or the patients. However, some health insurance companies, such as the financially particularly well-behaved Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) have already announced that they will pass on part of the surpluses as premiums to the insured. (Fp)

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Controversy over high surpluses of the health insurance companies

Picture: Thorsten Freyer