The risk of a massive increase in contributions for those with statutory insurance
Next year, contributions for statutory health insurance will amount to 17 percent, predicts Techniker Krankenkasse - previously considered a "completely absurd magnitude". If politics doesn't intervene, it could even be 20 percent in a few years.
According to Techniker Krankenkasse (TK), statutory health insurance is facing an increase in rates of up to 20 percent by the end of the decade. As early as the beginning of next year, there will be "widespread significant increases in contribution rates across the entire statutory health insurance system," said TK's CEO Jens Baas to the newspapers of the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland. An increase of up to 0.6 percentage points next year is "absolutely realistic."
This would then result in an average contribution of almost 17 percent, said Baas. "That was still considered a completely absurd magnitude a few years ago." However, the increase will continue: "Without countermeasures, we are heading unchecked towards a contribution rate of 20 percent by the end of the decade."
The general contribution to statutory health insurance is currently 14.6 percent of income. In addition, there is the supplementary contribution, which depends on the health insurance company and is currently an average of 1.7 percent this year, according to the Federal Ministry of Health.
TK Blames Lauterbach
The head of Germany's largest health insurance company blamed Health Minister Karl Lauterbach for the rising costs. Baas called on the Minister to ensure the stability of the health insurance finances. "Politics cannot always just make laws that lead to higher costs," said the TK CEO. "It's finally time to address how we can control the rising costs."
Baas particularly warned about rising costs for medications. "The prices for new drugs are exploding," he said. The costs for new gene therapies are now in the millions per treatment. "If this development continues, we won't be able to afford good medications. That must not happen."
Baas called for a reform of the price negotiations between health insurance companies and the pharmaceutical industry. Prices should be based on actual research and production costs. Japan is taking this approach, and it's also planned in the USA that manufacturers must disclose these costs. "Pharmaceutical companies should make good money from innovative therapies," said Baas. "But the prices must be fair and affordable."
Given the current situation where Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) predicts a potential increase in statutory health insurance contributions to 20% by the end of the decade, two relevant sentences could be:
- To mitigate these increasing costs, it would be beneficial to explore the implementation of a legal health insurance plan that can offer more affordable coverage options for individuals and families.
- Amidst these escalating costs, it's crucial for the government to consider legislating measures that support more competitively priced legal health insurance plans, ensuring accessibility for all citizens.
