Higher health insurance premiums dampen income growth
Keystone-SDA
Rising health insurance premiums in Switzerland will continue to have a negative impact on incomes this year. According to the CPI model calculation by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), the rise in premiums is dampening growth in average disposable income by 0.5 percentage points.
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The Health Insurance Premium Index (HIPI) will rise by 5.9% to 213.9 points for the 2024 premium year, the FSO said on Friday. The index can be used to estimate the impact of the increase in premiums on income trends. It takes into account the development of premiums for basic insurance and supplementary insurance.
According to the FSO, premiums for basic insurance in 2024 will rise by 8.1% compared to the previous year to an index level of 255.9 points. This estimate corresponds to the average premium development of the entire insured population.
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In contrast, premiums for supplementary insurance fell by 1.1% to 128.1 points, according to the FSO. Premiums for general supplementary hospital insurance fell by 5.7%, while they remained unchanged for semi-private and private supplementary hospital insurance.
If the premiums for basic insurance and supplementary insurance had remained stable overall, households would have had more money available for consumption or saving, according to the FSO. And premiums for basic insurance will continue to rise. The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) expects an average increase of 6% by 2025.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
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