Some offers from these Swiss health insurance companies have a defect.Image: watson
People who exercise a lot and have a healthy diet should be rewarded, at least that is the health insurance discourse. This incentive to live a healthy life is controversial and not only because of data protection.
Jogging in the woods, eating a plate of vegetables and pasta or doing yoga on the patio at work, Helsana health insurance promises to reward policyholders who lead a healthy lifestyle. People who document their healthy activities using the Helsana app can count on a discount of up to 300 francs a year.
The insurance company is not the only one in this case. CSS advertises discounts of up to 1,400 francs a year – for people who behave “healthily”. Sanitas, Concordia, Swica and Visana also offer programs where policyholders collect points by doing fitness exercises or eating healthier. In some cases, physical activity or sleep hours are also measured using a tracker.
Depending on the provider, the collected points can be paid out in cash, redeemed for vouchers, reserved for cheaper insurance policies or even given away.
What is problematic
But these offers all have at least one flaw: In basic insurance it is forbidden to give such discounts, let alone pay a bonus. The Federal Council said about the Helsana app:
“Special types of insurance or bonus programs which, in connection with certain behaviour, provide premium reductions to the insured or vulnerable groups, are not permitted in basic insurance.”
The Federal Council
It was five years ago. The Federal Council referred the Federal Data Protection Commissioner, who declared the use of basic insurance data for supplementary insurance illegal. Four years ago, the Federal Administrative Court ruled in his favor: Helsana’s bonus program violated the Data Protection Act.
After the criticism, the consumer protection took a closer look at the apps and found that the solidarity principle of basic insurance was cleansed, and that equal treatment was also not guaranteed for less athletic or disabled people.
The sector was unfazed by this criticism. Most health insurance companies offer discounts on supplementary insurance – or finance them out of this pool. Thus the Federal Office of Public Health also found in Helsana:
“No mandatory health insurance monies are diverted from its purpose, and there is no financial disadvantage to insured persons by opting out of the program.”
And data protection?
The only thing left is data processing. Not all applications guarantee non-transmission of medical data to third parties. Therefore, two years ago, consumer protection recommended the immediate removal of the Sanitas app. In comparison, CSS treats data with care.
People who have their heart rate, blood pressure and steps measured with a cash tracker should therefore read the data protection regulations carefully. At least until September 1. From then on, the new data protection law will require providers to regularly carry out a data protection impact assessment – minimizing the risks for policyholders. (wan) (aargauerzeitung.ch)
Translated and edited by Noëline Flippe
On Sunday, the canton of Boût du Lac became the first in Switzerland to introduce parental leave. In Bern, the same request was rejected as before in Zurich and at the federal level.
Parents who work at the end of the lake are granted parental leave for a total of 24 weeks. Sunday 18 June, with 57.9% of the votes, the voters accepted the initiative of the Geneva Greens. This initiative makes it possible to supplement the sixteen weeks of cantonal maternity leave with eight weeks in favor of the other parent, including the two weeks of federal paternity leave applicable since 2021. Of these eight extra weeks, six will necessarily go to the other. parent who does not benefit from maternity insurance and two weeks would be distributed as the parents wish. In other words, Geneva parents will now be able to share two weeks of parental leave.
