Health insurances do not want to pay for the Corona test

The federal government has ordered that the health insurance companies must pay for the corona tests, reports the “Sonntags Zeitung” in its current edition. Nevertheless, more than half of the premium payers have to pay the test themselves because of the high deductible. The health insurance companies are now protesting. The Santésuisse health insurance association says that the Epidemic Law (Epidemiegesetz) expressly states that the cantons have to pay for diagnostic tests. The health insurers thereby use general public health as their argument. If a large proportion of the population has to pay for the tests themselves because of their deductibles/franchises, this would create the wrong incentive. Santésuisse spokesman Manuel Ackermann says: "If these tests help to prevent the virus from spreading, it is in the public interest that no one should avoid taking a test because of financial considerations."

 

It is still difficult to estimate how much the tests will cost. To date, only around 200 people have been infected with the corona virus in Switzerland. A total of 3,500 Swiss have already been tested, and this has already resulted in costs of CHF 630,000 (i.e. approximately CHF 180 per test). Experts estimate that up to 70% of the population could be infected by the virus by the end of the epidemic. Assuming that most of the sick will be tested, this would result in additional health costs of CHF 1 billion. This corresponds to three percent of the premium.