For millions of people in Germany, the new year begins the way the old one ended: with headaches about rising prices.

It is an advantage if you at least have an overview of new costs and can react accordingly.

However, if you have statutory health insurance, you may only find out about higher contributions afterwards on your payslip – at a point in time when it is too late to change health insurance.

Because the budgets of the health insurance funds are no longer sufficient to cover the costs, the Bundestag made it possible to increase the additional contribution by an average of 0.3 percentage points in autumn.

Alexander Wulfers

Editor in the economy of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday newspaper.

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Not all, but many insurers followed suit and increased their rates.

So far, the additional contribution has averaged 1.3 percent of gross income.

What is new this year is that not every insured person will definitely find out about the increase.

Normally, health insurance companies have to inform each contributor individually by letter about such increases in contributions.

However, this obligation was suspended by law up to and including June 2023.

Instead, the Federal Ministry of Health recommends that the health insurance companies use websites or member magazines to inform the insured.

Other industries need to provide further information

The suspicion is that the government's discreet approach does not want to frighten voters and protect the already tight coffers from layoffs.

Officially, however, she justifies the suspension of the individual information obligation with the cost savings.

After all, the Ministry of Health argues, most people are now facing increases and not just a small group.

To write to everyone, that would mean printing out millions of letters, filling envelopes, paying postage.

Those affected are only advised to inform themselves independently.

The ministry left unanswered the FAS's question as to whether information could be sent inexpensively by e-mail.

Now the increase is not about huge amounts.

If you are single and have the average German salary of 4100 euros gross, 0.3 percentage points are 12.30 euros a month, almost 148 euros a year.

The employer also pays half of the health insurance contributions for employees.

But compared to other industries such as banks, which even have to obtain the explicit consent of customers for fee increases, the exemption is very generous.

The electricity and gas suppliers, who recently increased tariffs almost across the board, are not spared from the information obligation despite the energy crisis.

Peter Grieble, head of the insurance, nursing and health department at the consumer center in Baden-Württemberg, criticizes the approach.

The surcharge is "often not breathtakingly high".

nevertheless, a cover letter is “more consumer-oriented” than “more or less conspicuous information on the website or in the health insurance company’s member magazine”.

Transparent information about an increase in the contribution rate could be an important prerequisite for increasing the insured person's awareness of the possibility of switching.

The information of the insured is also relevant because they have a special right of termination in the event of an increase in contributions - regardless of how long they have been insured with their health insurance company, as the consumer advice center emphasizes.

Normally, termination is only possible after 12 months of membership.

For the special right of termination, however, there is a period up to the end of the month in which the contribution was increased.

This currently means: If the health insurance company increased the premium on January 1st, members can cancel until January 31st by registering with a new health insurance company.