Hospital Treatment
What statutory health insurance funds pay
Statutory health insurance funds cover the cost of all necessary treatment and hospital accommodation. Persons over 18 years old must make a co-payment of ten euros per day. The hospital settles the co-payment directly with the patient.
Free choice of hospitals
The right to a free choice of hospital is generally available to those with statutory health insurance. Even if the attending physician refers the patient to a nearby hospital, the insured person can choose another one. The only condition: The hospital is approved for the treatment of statutorily insured persons. Statutory health insurance funds guarantee a free choice of hospitals from the contract hospitals of the statutory health insurance fund.
No free choice of doctors
Statutorily insured patients do not have a free choice of doctors. The hospital decides which doctor will treat the patient. Those who wish to be treated by the head physician or a specific physician can select this as an additional "optional benefit" (Wahlleistung). Generally, accommodation in a single or double room is also an optional benefit. In both cases, patients bear the additional costs themselves.
Patients with statutory health insurance who wish to take advantage of optional benefits can take out private supplementary insurance. This "inpatient private supplementary insurance" would then cover the additional costs of treatment and accommodation.