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How much will medical care in Corona cost us year 2020?
Verena Nold: It is very important for health insurers that they can contribute to coping with the crisis and that the coronavirus does not put additional financial pressure on people. Therefore, the cost does not come first. We still don’t know the impact of the virus on health costs. What we now know for sure: In the first quarter of 2020, from January to March, costs in the Swiss health system increased by five percent.
A value above the average.
Yes On average, health care costs have increased between three and four percent in the last 20 years. In 2018 we even had below average growth. Now sadly, this breathing space is over.
What are the biggest cost drivers?
Nursing homes are part of this, physical therapy and outpatient hospitalizations.
This growth is independent of Corona, you say. Can you estimate the cost impact of the pandemic?
That will depend on several factors: how many people are still infected, how many hospital treatments will there be, and how many people should be treated in the intensive care unit. Intensive care costs a lot in terms of costs: if a crown patient occupies an intensive care bed for two to three weeks, this can cost up to CHF 120,000. But, as I said, cost is not the deciding factor. It is important that as many patients as possible recover again.
Experts hope Corona will cut costs. And the SP demands to keep premiums in 2021 at the current level …
We are committed to premium payers. We want to avoid higher premiums whenever possible. We won’t know until next year if the dent you’re talking about really exists. Because it is not clear if costs will not simply be changed. If operations that are now suspended are compensated for later, the total cost of medical care will be higher than planned. However, health insurance companies have a reserve buffer of CHF 8 billion that can be used to finance the additional costs of the Corona crisis. This amount corresponds to three or four monthly premiums. There is enough money to deal with the pandemic. And: If there is no second wave of infection, health insurers will not have to increase their cash reserves.
This all sounds like an impending premium increase.
We try to avoid that. We don’t want to burden people in Switzerland even more at this difficult time. But we do not have it in our hands, it depends on the general development of costs. So unfortunately I can’t completely rule it out. As I said, costs increased above average at the beginning of the year. Premiums are calculated based on expected cost development in the coming year. Premium calculations for health insurers will be sent to the Federal Office of Health for approval in July.
The task of cash registers is to pay bills. Is there currently a special regime?
The primary mission is to maintain funding for healthcare. So that we can assure this, the insurers have raised their emergency plans. Everything is done to ensure bills are paid quickly, video consultations are possible, and cost credits are awarded quickly. For very expensive medications, for example, there are generally in-depth testing procedures regarding medical necessity. This process is accelerated; if in doubt, payment is made.
The population and politicians are rediscovering the value of regional hospitals. Do you fear that the crown pandemic will lead to structural preservation?
No The crisis has shown that you need highly specialized medicine. You didn’t have very few beds, you didn’t have the correct ones. Therefore, some hospitals have admitted patients so that large specialized hospitals have sufficient capacity for people with a crown. In general, the Swiss health system coped with the crisis very well, as did the Confederation and the cantons.
So you give it the highest grade?
The Federal Council is doing an excellent job. However, I allow myself to be criticized: there were pandemic plans in the federal government, but obviously they have not been implemented. There are open questions that need urgent clarification. For example, it must be ensured in the future that we have the necessary protective materials to protect people. But there are other lessons we can learn from this crisis.
What would that be?
We have the highest prices for medicines in Europe. Here you pay significantly more for medicines, which are manufactured in China, than in neighboring countries. And yet there was a shortage of isolated supply! A high price level does not protect us against possible shortages. Emergency supplies of important drugs are more important. The mandatory fields are central to be armed. On the other hand, there is no reason why prices, for example, of generics are twice as high as in France or Germany.
