Holders of health insurance in Switzerland are sensitive to rising premiums, with nearly one in two considering switching or adjusting their basic cover

Premiums have been increasing at an above-average rate for the past three years. At the same time, many health insurers have seen their cushion of reserves increasingly eroded, as Deloitte’s latest study of health insurers shows. The cost pressure thus shows no signs of easing. This year too, many consumers are considering switching or adjusting their health insurance. Although the vast majority are very satisfied with their health insurance provider, more and more policyholders are coming out in favour of a unified fund. Some of them, however, have unrealistic expectations.

The cost of health care in Switzerland is continuing to increase, pulling up insurance premiums with it. Between 2019 and 2022, health insurers in the country were able to cushion the impact of higher premiums by dipping into financial reserves to offset the rising costs. However, this came at the expense of their solvency. Whereas the solvency ratio for the industry as a whole was still 207 per cent three years ago, it had fallen as low as 121 per cent by early 2024. The health insurers now appear to have used up all their room for manoeuvre, and some of them have even slipped below 100 per cent. This has consequences, because the regulations imposed by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) require them to take action to safeguard their financial stability.

A look at past events tells us that severe premium hikes like those seen over the past three years are nothing new. Back around 2002 and 2010, we witnessed jumps of 8 per cent a year or even more. And health insurers experiencing tight financial resources was an issue at that time too, due not least to the political pressure that they had faced in the preceding years to use up surplus reserves. “Experience suggests that the increase in costs is likely to fall back to its long-term average of 3 to 4 per cent in the medium term,” says Marcel Thom, Health Insurance Lead at Deloitte Switzerland.

The sharp rise in premiums prompted the audit and consulting company Deloitte to conduct a representative survey in August and September 2024, shortly before the upcoming increases became common knowledge. The survey set out to get an idea of policyholders’ willingness to switch, as well as their general level of satisfaction with their health insurer. It revealed that 34 per cent of respondents are considering switching provider and a further 20 per cent adjusting their insurance model or deductible this year.

Who are the potential switchers?

The increase in premiums of 6 per cent on average for 2025 that was announced a few days ago will make policyholders even more prepared to switch. The Deloitte survey revealed that over half (51 per cent) of the policyholders that it surveyed who have the maximum deductible of CHF 2,500 would have no qualms about moving to another provider. The willingness to switch is also high (41 per cent) among those with an alternative insurance model (e.g. HMO or telemedicine), while respondents in French-speaking Switzerland would be happier making the jump than their German-speaking counterparts (38 per cent versus 31 per cent).

At the same time, the public are growing increasingly unhappy about the rising health insurance premiums, with more and more people in Switzerland seeing the unified fund as a way to tackle the growing cost of health care. The percentage of consumers who back the idea of a unified fund has risen from 65 per cent in early summer to as much as 70 per cent in the latest survey.

Yet there is a clear contradiction in play here, because three-quarters (75 per cent) of those surveyed also said that they were satisfied or very satisfied with their health insurer – and this figure includes both supporters (74 per cent) and opponents (78 per cent) of the unified fund. This suggests that consumers are hoping that a unified fund will mainly give them lower premiums. These expectations seem unrealistic, however, because health insurers’ administrative costs make up a mere 5 per cent of premiums, according to the FOPH. Even a highly efficient unified health insurance fund would thus only be able to reduce premiums marginally, as Deloitte’s ‘Health Insurance Switzerland 2024’ study demonstrated back in June.

Hikes of up to 9 per cent in some cases

Health insurance premiums will rise at an above-average rate for the third year running in 2025. Nevertheless, many policyholders will feel like their increase is more than the 6 per cent officially communicated: Deloitte has analysed the growth in premiums and concluded that the cheapest monthly premiums for adults, for example, will go up by as much as 8.8 per cent on average.

Consumers would do well to be proactive in comparing the premiums charged by a range of health insurers. “A great many holders of health insurance haven’t yet exploited the potential available for making savings, even though they could definitely benefit financially from switching provider or tweaking their cover,” says Marcel Thom.

About the study

Alongside a detailed analysis of health insurance premiums, Deloitte’s ‘Health Insurance Switzerland: Premium Situation 2025’ study is based on a survey of 1,047 people in Switzerland (72 per cent in German-, 24 per cent in French- and 4 per cent in Italian-speaking Switzerland). It was conducted in August and September 2024 in partnership with a polling institute in order to gauge consumers’ attitudes towards switching and how satisfied they are with their current health insurer.