././././..

he Swiss spend a lot of money on insurance. Some is compulsory - like state pension contributions, pension fund and unemployment insurance, which are

deducted at source from salaries, and health insurance which every resident must arrange privately. Tenants are generally obliged to take out personal

liability insurance as a condition of their lease. Overall in 2004, an average Swiss family spent over 22% of its household budget on insurance. The Swiss

are among the world leaders in expenditure on private insurance.

Despite this, insurance companies earn half their money abroad. Switzerland is the leading insurance exporter in Europe.

Reinsurance (insurance for insurers), is also an important service, with much of the business done abroad.
 Company Complete Company Name Place
AIG Life Insurance 6932
AIG Life
Company (Switzerland) Ltd. Breganzona
Allianz Suisse
Allianz Suisse Vie 8022 Zürich
Leben Life insurance companies
licensed in Switzerland
1000 The following is an overview of all companies which
AXA Compagnie are licensed to carry life insurance business in
AXA Vie Lausanne 3 Switzerland. For more information,
d'assurances sur la vie see www.finma.ch
Cour
Basler Lebens-
Basler Leben 4002 Basel
Versicherungs-Gesellschaft
Convia
Convia Lebensversicherungs- 6002 Luzern
Gesellschaft
1001 The Swiss people are the most heavily
Forces Vives Forces Vives
Lausanne insured in the world, although this
Generali 8134 reflects social insurance such as health
Generali
Personenversicherungen Adliswil 1 insurance as well as more commercial
types of business. Nevertheless, Swiss
Groupe Groupe Mutuel Vie GMV 1920
insurers now rely on foreign business for
Mutuel Vie SA Martigny
two-thirds of their premium income.
Helvetia Helvetia Versicherungen 4002 Basel The insurance sector has been steadily
Pax, Schweizerische deregulated during the 1990s. One of
Pax Lebensversicherungs- 4002 Basel the last set of controls was scrapped in
Gesellschaft 1996 when the fixed tariff regime for

Phenix Compagnie 1001 third-party vehicle insurance was

Phenix Vie abolished. As of 1999, Swiss insurance
d'assurances sur la vie Lausanne
companies numbered over 100.
Schweizerische Mobiliar
Mobiliar
Lebensversicherungs- 1260 Nyon
Leben Switzerland controls an estimated one-
Gesellschaft third of the world's reinsurance, and
Schweiz. 4103 insurance income represents a major
Schweizerische National
National Bottmingen item in the Swiss balance of payments.
Leben AG
Leben BL Insurance investments are represented
Skandia heavily in the Swiss capital market, and
Skandia Leben AG 8034 Zürich
Leben Swiss insurance firms have invested
widely in foreign real estate. About half
Swiss Life Swiss Life 8022 Zürich
the domestic insurance business is in
UBS Life UBS Life AG 8098 Zürich the hands of the state. The Swiss
Vaudoise Vie, Compagnie 1001 Reinsurance Co. in Zürich is the largest
Vaudoise Vie
d'assurances Lausanne of its kind in the world. As of 1999,
Winterthur 8401 about 10% of all Swiss insurance
Winterthur Leben
Leben Winterthur companies dealt solely with reinsurance.
There are several types of compulsory
Zenith Vie, Compagnie 1005
Zenith Vie
d'assurances sur la Vie Lausanne
Zürich
Zürich Leben Lebensversicherungs- 8036 Zürich
Gesellschaft
insurance in Switzerland, including workers' compensation, third-party automobile liability, fire, pension, hunters',
aircraft, nuclear power station, old age, unemployment, and disability insurance. In 1999, the total income of the Swiss
domestic insurance market was 48 million, making it the twelth largest insurance market globaly

Read more: Insurance - Switzerland - tariff, power, sector http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Switzerland-

INSURANCE.html#ixzz18SAqr45w
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Swiss Life Insurance Companies

Major life insurance companies in Switzerland are as follows:
Winterthur Leben Insurance
Rentenanstalt Insurance
Basler Leben Insurance
Zurich Leben Insurance
Allianz Suisse Leben Insurance Pax Insurance

Non-Life Insurance Companies In Switzerland

Major non-life insurance companies in Switzerland are as follows:
Zurich Insurance
Swiss Mobilar Insurance
Allianz Suisse Insurance
CSS Insurance
Visana Insurance
Swiss National Insurance

Health insurance
Public and private health insurance in Switzerland

According to the Health Insurance Act (Krankenversicherungsgesetz - KVG) every person living in Switzerland is obliged to take out a basic health
insurance policy (Grundversicherung).

Any person taking up residence in Switzerland has to take out health insurance within 3 months of their arrival. In several situations, you will be asked
for proof you are insured. If you’re employed in Switzerland for less than 3 months and you can’t submit proof of insurance from your home country
that covers you, it is necessary to get Swiss insurance.

In some cases, you may be exempted from taking out health insurance in Switzerland, for example:

• if you have an obligatory health insurance scheme in your home country that covers the same medical cost as the basic insurance
scheme during your stay in Switzerland.
 • if you’re in Switzerland due to an exchange or other international program, (i.e. for students, interns and scientists). In this case, your
institution or employer has to guarantee that all your medical costs during your stay in Switzerland are reimbursed and has to pay all
expenses not covered by an insurance scheme.

• if you’ve been sent to Switzerland for a limited time by a foreign company.

• if you’re a diplomat or employed by an international organization.

How to get basic health insurance

Basic sickness insurance is provided by many public and private insurance companies – you are free to choose. Benefits are identical from all
providers, but premiums can vary considerably, so shop around (and have a look at www.comparis.ch).

Note that in Switzerland, sickness insurance will normally not be arranged by your employer. You have the responsibility of contacting providers and
arranging the insurance yourself. Only if your employer has an agreement with a specific insurer and pays part of your premiums (which rarely
happens), will you be forced to choose a specific provider.

Health insurance premiums in Switzerland are not dependent on income, but are calculated based on your personal risk profile. However, the Swiss
Confederation subsidizes premiums for low-income individuals/families. In 2004, the basic insurance premium was around CHF 250/month.

Swiss insurance schemes only cover individuals, not families as in some other European social security schemes. You will therefore have to insure
each household member, including children.

There are no restrictions on changing insurance companies, although the cancellation period for basic insurance is 3 months. Before leaving
Switzerland, you should cancel your insurance with at least one month’s notice.

Benefits of the basic insurance scheme

Compulsory sickness insurance covers medical services in connection with sickness, accidents (if not covered by an accident insurance policy) and
maternity. The insurance policy covers in- and out-patient medical treatment, and medication prescribed by a doctor.

If you only have a compulsory basic insurance scheme, you are obliged to make a contribution towards your total annual medical cost, up to a certain
limit per year. This ‘franchise’ is calculated as a percentage of your total annual medical costs and capped at a yearly limit. In 2004, this limit was CHF
300 per year. By choosing to pay a higher yearly franchise, you can lower your monthly insurance premiums (i.e. you are betting on not getting ill
much). Some insurance companies also lower your monthly premiums if you haven’t incurred any costs for a specific period.

As a rule, dental treatment is not covered under the basic insurance scheme. If you want to be covered for dental treatment, you need additional dental
insurance ( Zahnarztversicherung, /assurance dentaire). This is offered by many companies and it is likely that the same company who provides health
cover will be able to propose a policy.

Additional insurance

About 40% of the Swiss population chose to top-up their insurance cover. This is commonly in order to have more comfortable accommodation during
a hospital stay or wider choice of treatments. In contrast to basic insurance, insurers may refuse applicants for additional insurance or
only accept them subject to certain conditions. Private medical and additional dental cover may only become effective after a three-
month qualifying period

Compulsory coverage and costs

Swiss are required to purchase basic health insurance, which covers a range of treatments detailed in the Federal Act. It is therefore the same

throughout the country and avoids double standards in healthcare. Insurers are required to offer this basic insurance to everyone, regardless of age or

medical condition. They are not allowed to make a profit off this basic insurance, but can on supplemental plans.[2]

Regulations also restrict the allowable policies and profits that a private insurer may offer, as noted by healthcare economics scholar Uwe Reinhardt in

a review inJAMA. Reinhardt writes that,

"To compete in the market for compulsory health insurance, a Swiss health insurer must be registered with the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health,

which regulates health insurance under the 1994 statute. The insurers were not allowed to earn profits from the mandated benefit package, although

they have always been able to profit from the sale of actuarially priced supplementary benefits (mainly superior amenities).
Regulations require "a 25-year-old and an 80-year-old individual pay a given insurer the same premium for the same type of policy..Overall, then, the

Swiss health system is a variant of the highly government-regulated social insurance systems of Europe..that rely on ostensibly private, nonprofit

health insurers that also are subject to uniform fee schedules and myriad government regulations."[3]

Health care spending, in U.S. dollars PPP-adjusted, in Switzerland per capita from 1998 to 2008

The insured pays the insurance premium for the basic plan up to 8% of their personal income. If a premium is higher than this, then the government

gives the insured a cash subsidy to pay for any additional premium.[2]

The universal compulsory coverage provides for treatment in case of illness or accident (unless another accident insurance provides the cover) and

pregnancy. Health insurance covers the costs of medical treatment and hospitalisation of the insured. However, the insured person pays part of the

cost of treatment. This is done:

 by means of an annual excess (or deductible, called the franchise), which ranges from CHF 300 to a maximum of CHF 2,500 as chosen

by the insured person (premiums are adjusted accordingly);

 and by a charge of 10% of the costs over and above the excess. This is known as the retention, and is up to a maximum of 700CHF per

year (excluding medication).

In case of pregnancy there is no charge. For hospitalisation, one pays a contribution to room and service costs.

Insurance premiums vary from insurance company to company (Ger. Krankenkassen, Fr. caisses-maladie, It.casse malati), the excess level chosen

(franchise), the place of residence of the insured person and the degree of supplementary benefit coverage chosen (dental care, private ward

hospitalisation, etc.).

In 2010, the average monthly compulsory basic health insurance premiums (with accident insurance) in Switzerland are:[4]

 CHF 351.05 for an adult (age 26– years)

 CHF 293.85 for a young adult (age 19–25 years)

 CHF 84.03 for a child (age 0–18 years)

[edit]Private coverage

The compulsory insurance can be supplemented by private "complementary" insurance policies that allow for coverage of some of the treatment

categories not covered by the basic insurance or to improve the standard of room and service in case of hospitalisation. This can include dental

treatment and private ward hospitalisation which are not covered by the compulsory insurance.

As far as the compulsory health insurance is concerned, the insurance companies cannot set any conditions relating to age, sex or state of health for

coverage. Although the level of premium can vary from one company to another, they must be identical within the same company for all insured

persons of the same age group and region, regardless of sex or state of health. This does not apply to complementary insurance, where premiums

are risk-based.

[edit]Organization

Children's hospital in Basel, Switzerland.

Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland.

The Swiss healthcare system is a combination of public, subsidised private and totally private systems:
  public: e. g. the University of Geneva Hospital (HUG) with 2,350 beds, 8,300 staff and 50,000 patients per year;

 subsidised private: the home care services to which one may have recourse in case of a difficult pregnancy, after childbirth, illness,

accident, handicap or old age;

 totally private: doctors in private practice and in private clinics.

The insured person has full freedom of choice among the recognised healthcare providers competent to treat their condition (in his region) on the

understanding that the costs are covered by the insurance up to the level of the official tariff. There is freedom of choice when selecting an insurance

company (provided it is an officially registered caisse-maladie or a private insurance company authorised by the Federal Act) to which one pays a

premium, usually on a monthly basis.

The list of officially-approved insurance companies can be obtained from the cantonal authority.

[edit]Hospitals

Main article: List of hospitals in Switzerland

[edit

]Statistics

Healthcare costs in Switzerland are 10.8% of GDP. Out-of-pocket

healthcare payments average US$1,350. [2]