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This means the increase will be lower than this year’s 8.7%.

According to the FOPH, the average monthly premium is calculated by adding up all premiums paid in Switzerland and dividing them by the number of insured persons.

For adults, the premium will rise by CHF25.30 to CHF449.20 in 2025. Young adults will have to pay CHF16.10 more and thus CHF314.10. The average premium for children will rise by CHF6.50 to CHF117.90.

The increase in premiums is due to the rising costs of health insurance, writes the FOPH. In 2023, cost increases of 4.6% had already risen faster than the long-term average. In the first six months of 2024, costs have risen again by 4.1% compared to the same period in the previous year.

Older people, expensive medication

According to the FOPH, health insurers expect costs to rise by 4.2% in the coming year. New medicines and treatment options as well as rising demand for services have led to this cost surge. The shift from inpatient procedures to outpatient care is also playing a role.

This makes medical sense and reduces costs overall. However, as outpatient treatment is only financed by compulsory health insurance, the shift leads to a higher premium burden.

According to the FOPH, costs will continue to rise in the future due to the ageing population and new therapies and medicines. New treatment options are to be welcomed. However, cost growth must be kept in check if the healthcare system is to be financed sustainably.

“Cost containment is an ongoing task that must be tackled again and again by different players in different places.”

At the beginning of 2024, the reserves of the health insurance funds across the entire sector had fallen from CHF8.5 billion to CHF7.3 billion. The Confederation cites the fact that costs rose more sharply in 2023 than was expected at the time the premiums were submitted as the main reason.

Translated from German by DeepL/mga