Health insurance and daily sickness benefits

Mandatory health insurance offers cover for illness, pregnancy and accidents, where there is no accident insurance for this. Employees are free to choose their policy. Everyone has the right to basic insurance regardless of their health or age. In addition, voluntary supplementary policies can be taken out (generally requiring a health check). Premiums are charged per person, not based on income. The amount of the premium depends on the amount of the division of costs chosen (CHF 0-2,500 + 10% of the costs up to a maximum of CHF 700) and the municipality where the insured person lives, averaging CHF 323 per month (2009). Employers do not generally make health insurance contributions.

Daily sickness benefits are voluntary. Their cost depends on the scope of cover (illness, maternity, accident), and the premiums can be divided 50:50 between the employer and the employee. If group insurance is not arranged for employees, employers are obliged to pay employees their full salary for a certain period (depending on years of service) if they are unable to work through no fault of their own. That is why many employers take out daily sickness benefits for their employees. Maternity and accident/illness benefits are treated equally when salary payments are continued. If a pregnant woman cannot attend work for health reasons, she is entitled to her full salary for a certain period of time.