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How to save money on your health insurance premiums

Save money on health insurance premiums

Healthcare costs can put a strain on the household budget, especially for families. The following tips can help you save money on your premiums - and find additional ways of getting a discount.

Tip 1: Alternative insurance model

Sanitas offers a range of insurance models for basic insurance, all of which offer the same benefits. The only difference between the alternative models is who you can contact when you need medical advice. Depending on the model you choose, you can benefit from a range of discounts on your premium compared to the standard Basic insurance model:

  • Network model Medbase MultiAccess: Discount of between 13% and 20%
  • HMO model NetMed: Discount of between 8% and 17%
  • Telemedicine model CallMed: Discout of between 9% and 23%
  • Family doctor model CareMed: Discount of between 7% and 10%
  • Telemedicine model Compact One: Discount of between 6% and 28%

Tip 2: Higher deductible, lower premium

Your deductible is the share you pay towards treatment costs. It always applies for a calendar year. If you increase your deductible for basic insurance, you can save up to CHF 1,540 a year. For example, with a deductible of CHF 1,000 you pay the first CHF 1,000 for medical treatment yourself.

Important: Only increase your deductible if you rarely go the to doctor. Bear in mind that you have to cover the costs of any treatment up to the amount of your deductible plus a copayment of CHF 700.

Good to know: You can change the deductible yourself in the customer portal.

Customer portal
Deductibles Savings potential per year
CHF 0 (standard)
  
CHF 100 up to CHF 70
CHF 200 up to CHF 140
CHF 300 up to CHF 210
CHF 400 up to CHF 280
CHF 500 up to CHF 350
CHF 600 up to CHF 420
Deductibles Savings potential per year
CHF 300 (standard)
  
CHF 500 up to CHF 140
CHF 1,000 up to CHF 490
CHF 1,500 up to CHF 840
CHF 2,000 up to CHF 1,190
CHF 2,500
 up to CHF 1,540

Tip 3: Take out insurance as a family

Basic insurance

Families receive a discount on their children’s basic insurance premiums:

  • 77.5% discount on the adult premium

Supplementary insurance plans

With the Classic, Family and Hospital Standard Liberty supplementary insurance plans:

  • Insurance free for the third child onwards

Family supplementary insurance

Every child who has basic insurance plus Family supplementary insurance with Sanitas receives:

  • A loyalty bonus of CHF 50 per year
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Tip 4: Exclude accident cover

Save 6.5% on your premium

When can you exclude accident cover? When you work at least eight hours a week for the same company you are automatically insured against occupational and non-occupational accidents through your employer.

Tip 5: Generics instead of original drugs

When you buy generics you usually have a copayment of just 10% . The copayment for original drugs is 20%.

What is a generic?

A generic product contains the same active ingredients in the same dosage as the original drug and is therefore – with a few medically justified exceptions – a cost-effective, equivalent alternative. As generics do not have to be developed completely from scratch and the development costs are therefore low, these products are available more cheaply than original drugs. You can find an article on this in our Sanitas Online Magazine.

Find out whether there’s a lower-cost generic available for your drug:

Generic drug finder

Good to know: The generic drug finder is also available in the Sanitas Portal app. You can download the app free of charge:

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Tip 6: Order medicines from a online pharmacy

Thanks to our partnership with the Zur Rose and MediService online pharmacies, you can take advantage of numerous benefits. You don’t have to worry about the billing, because the pharmacies settle invoices directly with Sanitas.

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Your benefits:

  • No pharmacy charges (save CHF 4.30 on the medicine check for each prescribed medication and CHF 3.25 on the purchasing check)
  • Attractive discounts on specific products
  • Free delivery throughout Switzerland within two working days 
  • Order repeat prescriptions quickly and easily with an online prescription account
To the online pharmacies

Tip 7: Earn rewards for exercise

The Sanitas Active app is a fun way to help you get more exercise. You can now earn virtual coins for running, swimming, cycling and taking part in fitness or yoga classes. The coins you collect can be redeemed for vouchers to spend in the online shops of our partners.

To the Active app

Tip 8: Suspend your insurance

If you do military service, civil service or civil defence for more than 60 consecutive days, you can suspend your basic insurance. This means your insurance is paused for a specified period and you don’t pay a premium. For the duration of your military or civil service, you are insured for accident and illness and any associated economic consequences under military insurance.

 

You have to do military service?

You can use this template to submit your marching order or notification of the start of civil service/civil defence.

Important: Send us your application to suspend your insurance at least eight weeks before starting your service.

Suspend your insurance

 

Suspend supplementary insurance 

You can also suspend your supplementary insurance plans and save 70% on your premium. You can also suspend your supplementary insurance plans if you’re planning a longer stay abroad.

Important: Once you’ve suspended your insurance, you're no longer able to claim benefits.

 

Advice hotline

0844 150 150 – Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm

Tip 9: Pay in advance

Premiums are usually paid monthly. However, you can also pay your premiums for a year or six months in advance. For paying a year in advance you receive a discount of 1% and for six months 0.5%.

Tip 10: Get a discount with a framework agreement

Sanitas has framework agreements with companies and associations. Customers insured under framework agreements benefit from attractive preferential terms. Ask your employer or association if they have a partnership with Sanitas. If they do, you and your family are entitled to preferential terms under the framework agreement.

Basic insurance
Choose your insurance model
To the models
Customer portal
Change annual deductible or exclude accident cover
Sanitas customer portal