Video, 3 min 23 s Basic vs supplementary health insurance in Switzerland
Basic health insurance in Switzerland is mandatory and gives the same benefits at every insurer, by law.
Private health insurance in Switzerland: is it worth it?
Is private health insurance worth it in Switzerland? Basic insurance is the same at every insurer by law; "private" here means hospital cover. Semi-private or private can make sense, but the price climbs with age, so the decision belongs in your 30s and 40s.
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Private health insurance in Switzerland: what it really buysAlso on Semi-private vs private hospital insurance and The right health insurance for you.
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0:00 What "private" means in Switzerland
Is private health insurance in Switzerland worth it, and which one is best? First, what private means here. Basic insurance is mandatory and the same at every insurer. When people say private, they usually mean hospital cover: semi-private or private. The short answer: for some people it is, and for some, basic is enough. Hospital cover buys a room, and a choice of doctor and hospital. It does not buy better medicine. There is no best. There is right for you.
0:38 The five tiers
Five tiers. Basic only: the general ward, four to six beds, the doctor on duty, a hospital in your canton. Hospital Flex: choose the ward at each admission, with a co-payment to upgrade. Semi-private: a two-bed room, a senior physician, any hospital in Switzerland. Private: a single room, the chief physician, and private clinics. Private worldwide: the same, abroad too.
1:12 What you actually get
What changes is the room, who treats you, and where. Swiss public hospital care is excellent. For a routine operation, semi-private and private give the same medical outcome. The chief physician matters most in complex surgery.
1:30 The age-curve trap
The trap we usually catch: the age curve. Most insurers price on your age, and the premium steps up every five-year band, for life. The curve is steepest at private: lock it in at 32, and you carry the steep end for 30 years. You can always step down. Stepping up is harder: after 65, applying may not be possible at all. So decide in your thirties and forties, while you are healthy: hospital cover is underwritten, and the insurer can decline you or exclude a condition.
2:09 When basic is enough
And sometimes the honest answer is none. Young, healthy, no clinic you want by name, no treatment planned outside your canton: basic is enough. Keep the CHF 200 a month, and add semi-private later, while your health allows it.
2:27 What it costs
What does it cost? In our Hospital Insurance Cost Index, semi-private averages CHF 162 a month, and private 266. The age you join matters: private averages CHF 144 for someone joining at 26, and 441 at 65. Choose the tier first. The insurer is the easy part.
2:55 Your first Swiss insurance review
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