Germany's GKV reform raises copayments, cuts screenings; firms boost corporate health plans amid legal, tech, and workplace changes.
Employers across Germany are recalibrating their employee benefits and legal compliance after lawmakers passed a sweeping statutory health insurance (GKV) overhaul on 10 July. The package, which takes effect in stages from 2027, raises copayments for medications and therapeutic treatments and eliminates skin-cancer screening as a preventive service. A year later, a contribution surcharge will apply to spousal family insurance when no children under twelve live in the household.
The changes are pushing companies, especially in the Mittelstand, to beef up corporate health insurance (bKV) that covers items such as dental prosthetics and vision aids – areas the public system no longer fully finances. Prevention programmes are also gaining traction. Applications for "RV Fit", a federal pension insurance initiative, have surged from roughly 12,000 in 2020 to around 65,000 most recently. Among the most sought-after measures is workplace eye protection, which must comply with strict CE marking and UV standards.
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