Majority of Swiss want single national health insurer, survey finds

Public and politcians alike are trying to find solutions to stem the ever-increasing healthcare costs in Switzerland. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

A majority of Swiss would support the creation of a single health insurer, rather than the multiple options currently available, a survey in the Le Temps newspaper said on Wednesday.

The survey comes a week after the announcement of an average increase of 8.7% in health insurance premiums for 2024.

According to the online poll by the Ipsos Switzerland institute between September 27 and 29, 61.2% of the 800 respondents said they were in favour of a single health insurer. Some 21.1% were opposed and 17.7% had no opinion. The proportion of “yes” votes reached 68.1% in French-speaking Switzerland and 58.1% in the German-speaking part of the country.

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A majority of 58% also approved the idea of adjusting premiums according to income levels. Here too, favourable opinions were found across the country: 67.6% in French-speaking Switzerland and 53.8% in German-speaking parts. Just over a quarter of Swiss were against such an adjustment of premiums based on income and 16.5% had no opinion.

While respondents supported changes in the financing of compulsory health insurance, they rejected the idea of limit benefits in exchange for paying a lower premium. This proposal only received 37.8% support, compared to 42.9% who opposed it. Rejection was more marked in French-speaking Switzerland (56.4%) than in German-speaking Switzerland (37.1%), where the idea appealed to 42.7%.

The Swiss have already twice refused the creation of a single national health insurer in popular votes.

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As for tackling costs, the left-wing Social Democrats have launched an initiative demanding that no insured person should pay more than 10% of their income on health insurance premiums. The text demands that federal and cantonal authorities contribute more to reducing premiums.

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