Change statutory health insurance

Changing statutory health insurance If you have statutory health insurance, you have the right to change your health insurance company. This is intended by the legislator to increase competition within the statutory health insurance (SHI) system.

1. Requirements for a change 2. How to change health insurance companies 3. What you should look for when choosing a health insurance company 4. Optional extras 5. Switch easily with the online comparison

Requirements for a change

In principle, anyone with statutory insurance can switch to another fund. You can purchase insurance from any fund that is open to your state. Salaried employees can also become a member of a fund that is open for the state in which their employer's personnel office is located. You can find an overview of the most favorable additional contributions in your federal state here.

If you have already been insured with your current health insurance company for 12 months, you can cancel your health insurance after this commitment period at any time with a notice period of two full months to the end of the month. The new health insurance company will take care of the preparation and transmission of the notice of termination by means of an electronic notification procedure. If you apply to switch to your new health insurance company in October, for example, you can cancel your contract by 31. December Leave your previous health insurance fund. Be a member of your new preferred health insurance fund at the beginning of the year.

For example: Change with a regular notice period

Change requested in

You leave your health insurance fund for

You are a member of your new health insurance fund as of

Special right of termination in the event of a premium increase

If your health insurance company increases the additional contribution, you have a special right of termination (an overview of current contribution increases can be found here). You can usually change your health insurance company – even if you haven't been insured with the company for 12 months yet. In order to use this special right of termination, you must apply for a change to a new health insurance company of your choice by the end of the month in which the insurance company increases the premium. In the case of the special termination right, the new health insurance company will also take over the preparation and transmission of the termination notice to your old health insurance company via the electronic notification procedure.

The notice period in this case is also two months. This means: If your health insurance company increases the additional contribution to 1. January, you can apply for a change to a new health insurance fund of your choice until the end of January. The withdrawal from your previous health insurance will then become effective at the end of March. By early April, you may already be insured with your new fund of choice. During the notice period, you still have to pay the increased additional contribution to your old health insurance fund.

Exception

The special right of termination does not apply to voluntarily insured persons who have taken out an optional tariff for statutory sick pay.

Example: Special right of termination

Commitment period when changing employer

A special right to change has existed for insured persons since 1 January 2009. January 2021, when you change your employer. Then you can immediately change the insurance company, d. H. Cancellation at their advance payment. Without taking into account the commitment period. However, it is important that employees choose a new fund within 14 days of starting work.

This is how a change of health insurance fund works

We explain how you can easily change your health insurance company.

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Compare health insurance companies transparently

Before switching, you should compare the amount of the additional contribution as well as the benefits of the individual health insurance companies with each other. Every health insurance company now sets its own additional contribution rate, which is levied in addition to the general contribution rate of 14.6. The insurance companies also differ in the additional benefits that are offered over and above the statutory benefits catalog.

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Select the new health insurance company of your choice and submit your application for a change conveniently online

The change is quite simple for you, because since 1. January 2021 you no longer have to cancel your current health insurance fund yourself. The new health insurance company will take care of this for you via an electronic notification procedure. However, you should still observe the notice period of two calendar months.

You can submit the application for the change here very simply, quickly and easily directly to us.

You must submit your application for membership to your chosen health insurance company. If you apply for a change via CHECK24, we will forward your application to your new preferred insurance company. So you can be sure that your application contains all relevant information.

In contrast to private health insurance, you do not have to answer any questions about possible pre-existing conditions for a change of statutory health insurance. If you already have statutory health insurance before you change your health insurance company, your new health insurance company must accept you in any case – even if you suffer from a serious illness.

Your switch is complete as soon as your employer or health insurer also accepts your transfer. The office that is required to register you is informed about your change. The new health insurance company usually sends a membership certificate to the office that is required to register you. However, please also inform your employer or your reporting office (z. B. Employment office) about the change.

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Registration: You need these documents

– Application form of the new health insurance company: When changing via CHECK24, we make sure that your application contains all relevant information. – Social security number: also known as pension insurance number. If this information is not available, you can also enter your maiden name, place of birth and nationality. – Address of your employer: This lets your new health insurance company know where your health insurance contributions will be collected. – Passport photo for electronic health card: You can usually upload this photo conveniently online to your new insurance company as soon as the insurance company processes your admission.

What you should look for when choosing a health insurance company

If you want to change your health insurance company, you should pay particular attention to the following points:

– Amount of the additional contribution – Voluntary additional benefits – Service

Amount of the additional contribution

First, you should pay attention to the contribution of your health insurance. Because since 1. From January 2015, each health insurance company may levy its own additional contribution. Since January 2019, employees and pensioners only have to pay half of the contribution, self-employed persons have to pay the full contribution alone.

How high the additional contribution turns out, depends on the financial situation of the respective health insurance company. The differences between the insurers are sometimes considerable: While some insurers charge an additional contribution of 0.35 percent, others charge up to 1.7 percent. This means: The possible total contribution varies between 14.95 and 16.30 percent.

Example: This is how much an employee can save

Checkout

Contribution rate

Contribution per month (Euro)

Worker– share per month (Euro)

Savings per year (Euro)

Voluntary additional benefits

For the choice of the right health insurance is often not only the contribution rate decisive. Because health insurance companies differ in the voluntary benefits they offer and how good their service is. Around 95 percent of all services are required by law. Therefore the same for all health insurance companies. For you as an insured person, this means that you will not be entitled to any important treatment or. Basic supply must do without. In addition, however, the funds offer their members additional services, which may well differ from fund to fund. For example, there are health insurance companies that subsidize professional teeth cleaning, osteopathy or health courses. Others offer additional vaccinations, for example for a trip abroad. When looking for a health insurance fund, you should therefore consider which additional services are particularly important to you and whether you might be willing to pay a higher premium for certain offers.

Services*

– Teeth, esp. Professional teeth cleaning (subsidy) as well as discounted dentures – Additional vaccinations, e.G.B. Flu vaccinations, travel vaccinations and vaccinations against the Corona virus (Covid 19) – Extended cancer screening, z. B. Against breast, colon and skin cancer – osteopathy – homeopathy – sports& Movement, z. B. Sports medical examinations or health courses – family, z. B. Artificial insemination, prenatal care or midwife referral – electronic patient receipts

* Exemplary listing, depending on the respective health insurance company.

Health insurance companies differ in the services they offer. For example, some health insurance companies offer a service phone that is manned around the clock. Others help their insureds to get an appointment with a specialist or have many regional offices.

Simply switch with the online comparison

You can easily change your health insurance with CHECK24. With our online comparison, you can compare numerous public health insurance plans and search specifically for the health insurance plan that best suits you. In addition, you will see at a glance how high the contribution of the respective health insurance company is and how much you can save if you change companies.

If desired, you can apply online right away. If you have any questions, our customer service representatives will be happy to assist you. Our comparison also shows you which additional voluntary benefits are offered by the individual health insurance companies. Do you still have questions about the statutory health insurance? Call us – our customer advisors will be happy to help you.

Why you should change your health insurance via CHECK24?
A serious health insurance comparison should list a large number of health insurance companies, detail contribution rates for individual occupational groups and also transparently depict relevant additional benefits. All this offers you our CHECK24 comparison for statutory health insurance companies! With currently 60 participating health insurance companies, we offer you a large overview of generally accessible health insurance companies, their contribution rates as well as additional benefits. We also provide you with customer feedback on the individual health insurance companies, so that you can make a well-informed choice of your new preferred insurance company.

The change of the health insurance is very easy. Our CHECK24 team of experts has a lot of experience in the field of statutory health insurances as well as in changing insurances. Therefore, please use our service: We are at your disposal for any questions and requests until you finally hold your new health card in your hands. If something does not go smoothly, your application is in good hands with us. As a rule, we can clarify your concerns quickly and easily with your new preferred insurance company, so that your change is made as desired. Our service is of course free of charge.

For more information, see our CHECK-24 guides on the subject: