Intl. private health insurance might be outlawed

For a while I have advised folks on TT regarding their problems and questions in reference to the German health insurance system and I know that many freelancers have been so frustrated by the complexity and high cost of German private health insurances that they have opted for international health insurances like BUPA, MediCare, ExpatHealth, ALC and the likes instead. As I have pointed out in my WIKI article on health insurances here at TT, this is perfectly legal in Germany according to current laws for freelancers ( and would even apply in theory to employees too, but is usually not possible due to employers not wanting the use of these insurances (for tax and other reasons)).

As many of you will have followed in the media during the last couple of month, major changes are pending since a first draft of a complete reform law for German health insurance system has been proposed Oct. 27th of last year. Since then some of the issues of the draft have been altered, some new issues have been added and some issues have been totally cancelled, most of which are only interesting for those few freaks who try to make the complicated system even more complex every year.

This upcoming Friday, Feb. 2nd, the German Bundestag will debate and vote on the draft and pass a new law for health insurances in Germany, public and private. While the law will not be in effect before our second chamber, Bundesrat, has voted on it too and before finally the Bundespräsident has signed it (and he might decline to do so if he feels that some parts of the law are not in line with our constitution as some legal experts already claim), some major change seems to be due that could make it impossible for freelancers living and working in Germany to continue to use solely international health insurances for their coverage.

The latest news from the different comittees tackling the reform law is, that the law will present for the first time that every body in Germany has to have a health insurance. The rational behind that is that due to the economic downturn 2000-2004, several thousand of freelancers and selfemployed people in Germany lost their private health insurance (after not being able to pay their dues for 3 consecutive months) and are without German health insurance ever since. This rational is certainly not a bad one, socially speaking. However, at least to my current understanding of the draft and of the comments I got from members of the Bundestag in this issue, the new law does expect everyone to have a German health insurance and international insurances may not count as fulffilling the requirements set by this law.

As a result it could well be that starting from the day this law becomes effecitve, all freelancers not of German nationality might be forced to get a German private (or, if you choose so: a public) health insurance instead of their prior international health insurance.

Once the final draft of the law has been voted on, I will make the effort to clear this point with the responsible authorities for all Toytowners as soon as possible and post the result here for everybody's conveniance. I just thought that for those of you who have to prolong their current international health insurances within the next days or weeks this information might be important with a view at the period you opt to extend your current insurance (and pay for it).

Sorry if this is bad news for some.

Thanks very much - good to know.

Thanks for the info - this would be bad news for me if it happens.

thanks for keeping us updated, very much appreciated.

Oh bollox, i've just signed up for BUPA Int'l instead of a German policy.

I'm guessing though that any law won't come into effect for some time, e.g. January 1st 2008...? Also, might not happen...

For freelance journalists, writers, and others working in the "creative arts", there's another lesser-known krankenkasse, namely the Künstlersozialkasse. See item 5 under Ratgeber Krankenversicherung . It allows these freelancers to save 50% of their insurance premiums. Depending on your type of freelancing, it may pay to check into this.

Here's the link for the Künstlersozialkasse.

My BUPA policy is up for renewal, I'm glad I kept procrastinating. I wish I knew more about other options. I have a feeling this is going to be expensive.

That is so typically Germany, why make things easy when they can make it over the top complicated. In most countries (Canada excepted where private health care is banned) you have a public system which everyone pays into and the option of purchasing private health care. But that's too easy for the Germans. The problem is that Germany is being forced to deal with a social security system that is unsustainable in the long term and so far they've only been tinkering around the edges.

Which brings up a point, generally how much is health care for free lancers, if you couldn't afford it when it was optional, how the hell you going ot afford it when your forced to buy it. If you have no money you have no money. It doesn't make any sense.

Any idea how this will effect employees in international companies who are sent here for a few years, but their main contract is not in Germany, but are paid here and have international health insurance?

Sounds very much like a bad law drafted by incompetent legislators. Not the first time that has happened and won't be the last.

I <<heart>> BUPA International

they are proposing to compel private insurance companies to offer "basic" insurance cover to those who can't afford full cover. This will only force up premiums for the rest of the privatly insured as naturally the insurance companies will pass on the increased risk.

Whoever drew up this law is an utter muppet.

Guess you might have to join us plebs in the public system.

ha ha ha, good one

you're on form today ER

What will happen if it does become law? They cannot prevent the insurace company paying medical bills? The only people who know about the insuance is the KVR. But that goes back years. I could have changed it several times since then.

I am working this week day and night to get those applications for clients through before tonight midnight, who want to switch from public to private insurance before the new law will make this much harder.
Having seen that there are a couple of questions/comments to my posting, here are a couple of answers as far as I can give them already. DEtailed information hopefully early next week, when I have read the final version of the law and spoke to a couple of people.

IAN asked, what will happen with the International Insurances people already have/use and have paid for? Answer is: nothing, of course these insurances will be able to pay according to the coverage. But you will most likely be forced to pay also for a German private health insurance as well, so you pay double and that is the main problem at hand. If the law requires everyone to have a German health insurance, foreigners with residential permits will probably be contacted by the authorities and asked to prove that they have such an insurance.

LASSIE asked about the consequences for foreign emloyees who are sent here from their mother companies to work for a couple of years? There is a regulation for employees who are "ENTSENDET" and if this regulation applys for an international employee, he will not be forced to join the German health insurance system, neither public nor private. If you need to know more about what factors constitute a "Entsendung", just let me know, I have stored it somewhere. Please check also the WIKI on health insurance here at TT.

SmallTownBoy asked, when the law will become effective? Well, as I mentioned before, first it has to pass through our second chamber, Bundesrat. Even though there are some complaints from our Bavarian state gov. and some other states, it would appear that there is a solid majority for passing the law as it is in the Bundesrat. This will happen within 1-2 weeks after tomorrows vote in the Bundestag. Then finally our präsident has to sign the law and have it published in the Bundesblatt. There is a slim chance that he might reject to sign due to some already existing claims that the law breaches certain constitutional rights. My guess, however, is, that he will sign it and leave it to the courts to straigthen things out which has become the fashion in German in recent years... Therefore I would assume - and this was the goal of the German gov. all along - that the law becomes effective end of March/early April.
Since we will know more about the law after tomorrow, there will be enough time to find out, if and how freelancers with international health insurances have to react to the changes.

MunichMom quite rightly pointed out, how inexpansive and good the Künstlersozialkasse can be for all those freelancers who can apply. There are some strange definitions as to who can apply and who can't, but if you have a chance, join!

For all employees, whose regular gross salary is above the threshold of EUR 3.975,00 per month and who think about switching from public to private health insurance (good choice for some, but not for everyone!), beware:
if you have not been member of a public insurance for at least the last three consecutive years or if your salary has just been rised over the threshold recently you should act immideately and cancel your public health insurance until today midnight, otherwise you might be forced to stay in the public insurance for a couple of more years before you are allowed to switch according to the draft-law. However, you should not cancel at all if your health has deteriorated in recent years and if you are suffering some permanent/chronical health problems, since a private health insurance might not accept you or only at tremendous costs.

So much for today, more after the weekend
Cheerio

Hello to all. Here is a link to the latest news concerning the new Health Insurance scheme here in Germany, concerning the Private and Public health insurance, employees and self- employers from Bloomberg web site.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...p;refer=germany
A big thanks to Toytown for this thread as it is very informative to Freelance Teachers as myself and as to many others.
Cheers to all.
Elizabeth

OK so I am following the conversation so far.

One question.
Starshallows original piece referred to freelancers (i.e. self employed) possiblz not being able to choose non-German insurances (and accepted that most of the helpful side piece on health insurance refers to the employer/employee regulation.
So if a frelancer is prevented from choosing a foreign health insurer how does this fit with European law?

My understanding is that if an insurer in one country is approved and regulated in his home country he can operate in another (subject to some requirements like having tax representatives and notifying the local regulator, here its BAFIN).
The proposed rule would seem to prevent BUPA, fo example selling policies in Germany and does that not breach the higher European law and be a non-starter?

Just one short news-flash, but without warranty yet: according to my first reading of the new law, the problem described by me with regards to the use of foreign helath insurances like BUPA and so on appears to become relevant for foreign freelancers not before 2009 since the proposition, that everyone in Germany must be insured with a health insurance will not become effective before 2009. I am still checking for a complete document which includes all possible changes from the committees and from the parliament last week and have not found one yet. Will come back to you as soon as I have concrete proof from the law-text.
Cheerio
Pat a.k.a Starshollow

Outlawing of International Health Insurance. I believe that this may be difficult to implement especially in light of the supposed 'EU Free Market' concept. It has some of the hallmarks of the issue concerning 'compulsory' Long Term care insurance (Pflegeversicherung). Contrary to some belief this is NOT legally binding upon the individual, but rather on the German insurers, both Statutory and Private, who are required by law to provide this. After all there are still many people who have no health insurance at all. Despite some schools of thought that this law also applies to international insurers - it does not. These insurances are written under the laws of the country where they are established and therefore not subject to German Law - although they are required to be authorised to be marketed in Germany, and this requires in turn, that certain standards are met and certain levels of cover are provided.

I work closely with both AXA and A La Carte, both of whom are authorised as above, and I have passed this information on to them for their comment.

There is a strong Private Insurance lobby in Germany that opposes some of the proposed health reforms. Many, if not all Private Insurers, would find it very dificult, if not impossible to 'match' all the facilities provided by the statutory insurers as proposed, such as for example providing for all existing conditions of potential new clients.

As has been mentioned, it is unlikely that this will come into law before 2009 although some measures may be introduced before then.

Mike Woodiwiss
Spectrum International

Extract from Press report on the proposed Health Reforms (not my grammatical errors!):

Under the legislation, a new central health fund will be created by 2009 which are expected to cover every German citizen. There are currently about 300,000 people in Germany remain uninsured.

Expatriate please note this refers to: GERMAN CITIZENs not German Residents!

Mike Woodiwiss
Spectrum International

O.k, here it is, my first attempt to condense the legal mumbo-jumbo in the new law text down to the important parts for all Expats living in Germany. Since there seems to be some confusion about what German law can regulate in reference to foreigners, I am trying to explain the important parts each with regards to the foreign national groups which might find these topics relevant for them. In contrast to what Mike wrote above ( and I DO share his passion for international health insurances and can confirm his superior knowledge in this regard), a lot of the new regulations specifically adress foreigners living in Germany in addition to German citizens. If anyone cares to to read through all the stuff, you may want to use the following links and print out the respective pages:
1. you need the old law-version of the 5. Sozialgesetzbuch, because the new law just mentions the changes and it will sure take some time before we have a new printed version of the 5.SGB somewhere: http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/sgb_5/
2. You can google for the "Bundestagsdrucksache 16/4200" which is the last version of the draft law the Bundestag actually voted upon.

I. Changes for foreign employees, regardless of the nationality

i) for those who are already living and working in Germany

If your gross salary used to be below EUR 3.937,50 per month in 2006 and EUR 3.975.- per month in this year, you will remain in the public system and continue not to have a choice to change into the private health insurance. So for now nothing changes much for you. What will happen soon is that all public insurances will within the next 2 years develop a common premium standard and will then charge add-on-costs if they want to, due to better coverage or if they need to because of poor cost management. Hence it will remain interesting for you to check out on the public insurance front which the least expansive public health insurances are. In Bavaria it is currently the KEH and the IKK Direkt as far as I know. If anyone wants to know, you can check the monthly FINANZTEST magazin or ask me.

If your gross salary was recently or last year raised above the threshold of EUR 3.975.- per month and if you have not cancelled your public insurance contract before Friday Feb. 2nd, you will now have to remain in the public insurance for another 3 years (including the current year). If you salary was already raised above the threshold in 2005 and has remained over the threshold ever since, you would still have to remain in the public insurance for another 1-2 years. This is a particularily stupid rule since it does burden you and your employer with unnecessarry additonal costs of up to EUR 15.000.- for the next 3 years according to computations I had made. But thats how it is from now on.

The new ruling is based on a change of § 6, 1 of the 5 SGB. There are a couple of exceptions for those who within those three years loose their ability to earn the gross salary in excess of the threshold, for instance due to proven disability to work for helath reasons or due to parency breakes. But even than you need to wait three years now before you change from public to private insurances. Only thing that could change that is if the law becomes a case for our German Supreme court and gets ruled out as unconstitutently. But thats some far and vague hope at best...

ii) for those coming newly to Germany now and in the future

In the past, if you came to Germany for an employment for the first time in your life and if your gross salary was in excess of the threshold from the beginning on, you did have a choice if you wanted to be insured publicly or rather in a private insurance. This old rule, § 9, 1, Nr. 1 of the 5 SGB has been disabandoned. From now on you have to become a member of the public system for the first three years regardless of your gross salary, unless you can prove that in your prior employment outside Germany you would have already been eligble for private health insurance. This is a very vague and fuzzy new regulation, come into the law with a new sub-section 13 to the § 5 5 SGB.

I have had already discussions with some of our authorities with regards to this new regulation, because there a couple of unanswered questions to this:
a) how does someone prove that his income outside Germany in the past three years was above the threshold? Does he need to suply payslips or tax notes(in case he was freelancing outside Germany and seeks employment in Germany now)?
b) to whom will he need to prove these facts, who or what will be the final ruling authority about this information?

If I understand this new law correctly, for instance an IT-genius from someplace outside Germany who has earned, lets say for the sake of the argument, +120.000.- EUR per year in the past 2 years and who was a student before that, would still have to remain another year in the German public insurance system. Or a top-notch manager from Toyota, whom BMW has lured with an even higher income and whose income in the past three years was in excess of EUR 200.000.- per year would still have to prove his former income outside Germany to some yet unknown authority in Germany. That will be fun to watch... What if the income was mostly stock-options-based and so on, which would not count as gross-salary in Germany for the computation of compulsory membership in German public insurances?

Anyway, newcomers to Germany in employment will find it now much more difficult to get into the private insurance should they desire to do so. And it doens't look as if the public system will become so much more attractive soon.

II. Changes for foreign self-employed from EU-countries plus Lichtenstein, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland

We have to differentiate between foreigners from EU-countries (and the other above enumerated countries) and "the rest of the world". As EU-citizen you enjoy the legal freedom of movement and freedom of trade.
Even though there is a new sub-section 11 to the section 5 of 5 SGB which states the obligation to become member of the public health insurance for foreigners, it does excempt all EU-citizens and the citizens from Lichtenstein, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.

Therefore it may come to you a some relief after the last days discussion on this thread: I read the last version of the law in such a way that all freelancers from EU-countries and those other countries named above can remain in their international health insurances.
At least for now I can find nothing among the new regulations that would force you to move into a German insurance, regardless if private or public. There are some disturbing comments from the plennary debate from some opposition politicians like Künast (Gree party) who sound like the understand the law that everyone in German (and that would not concern only German citizens) would be forced into German health insurances after Jan. 2009, but I can not see that in the law for now.

There were some comments above, that EU-citizens could never be forced you join German insurances at all. Unfortunately, being a citizen from an EU-country would not help it, if Germany would decide to have everyone in Germany to join a health insurance with a certain coverage should the governement ever decide to do so, since it is agreed among all Eu-countries that social-law-making remains in the power of the national authorities. Of course any foreign insurance could offer their health insurances too, but they would have to offer a kind of coverage deemed necessarry from the German gov. and I doubt that most international insurance would like to comply.


But anyway, heeeew, seems like all freelancers with EU-nationality are off the hook again and can continue to enjoy the less expansive international health insurances if they choose to do so.

III. Changes for foreign selfemployed/freelancers from non-EU-countries

From what I read today in the "Aufenthaltsgesetz" and so on, in order to understand the legal situation of foreign freelancers from non-EU-countries better, it is not so easy to receive a residence permit as a freelancer from those countries anyway. Hence I am interested in some comments from those to which the following new rules apply.

The new sub-section 11 to section 5 of the 5. SGB states that all foreigners, who are not from EU-countries (and those four additional countries named above) have to oblidge to the new regulation to become insured in German insurances if their resident permit is longer than 12 month and if they did not have to supply prove of their ability to earn a livelihood.
I just don't know to how many foreign freelancers this does apply. But if you believe that this new rule applies for you, just send me some information and I volunteer to find out how this new rule will work out for you. It would appear that freelancers under certain conditions from foreign non-European-countries might loose their elibility to use a foreign health insurance if they do not want to loose their resident permit in the future. We will probably have to wait until the authorities have written the explanations to the new regulations before we know for sure.

All right, that's it for today. Probably there will be a number of questions. I will try to address them during the next days whenever I find time next to my day-job.
Have a good one,

Pat a.k.a Starshollow

thanks again for the update and doing a translation for us.

I am happy I switched a few years ago to Private, otherwise I would still be paying those high rates.

First of all: Thanks, Pat, for all that information.

Couldn't make head nor tails of the whole thing before I stumbled across your thread.

As you appear to be able to solve the Gesundheitsreform-Mystery, can you please confirm that the authorities do not plan to track down those with no insurance and fine them? All this 'insurance is now a must have' talk is just that, right? I read somewhere that when you sign up with an insurance company just because you think that bypass can't wait any longer and go straight to a hospital with your new Versicherten-Card they'll make you pay extra. Which sounds fair enough. But they won't act if you don't bother them, true? When I am not insured and work freelance, I won't have to give my health insurance number next to my tax number on my invoices? Please validate...

P.S. If I ever decide to join the happy health-insured folks, I'll get in touch with you, Pat. And that's no sucking up. I've only read a couple of your posts and already you're more trust inspiring than the bloody Ulla Schmidt website. Not to mention Ulla herself.

I decided to just go ahead and get German private insurance and it turned out really well. I'm with Versicherungs Kammer Bayern and am really happy. Great deal in that it was about the cheapest around and the standard of care and coverage is excellent. I'd be happy to pass on the details of my contact there to anyone who's thinking about changing. Just pm me.

to DIMMER: as for now; I don't suppose anybody will start tracking down people, not before Jan. 2009 anyway that is. Even than it would probably require some changes to the laws and regulations for foreigners living in Germany based on resident permissions (Ausländergesetz, Aufenthaltsgesetz etc.) before anything would start in this direction. Mind you, we Germans make terribly good "Blockwarts" when it comes to that...

Why it can be a sensible thing especially for single, young freelancers to use a less expansive international health insurance instead of expansive German insurances, you should at least use that, an international health insurance, otherwise you risk loosing it all in case of a severe accident or health problem requiring to go to the hospital. I suffered a perforated appendix some 10 years ago and - since I was privately insured - I saw the bills from surgery and hospital (2 weeks stay) and they run up to 20.000.- EUR . Therefore please do not risk your livelihood and hard earned money going solo without ANY insurance. Contact Mike from Spectrum or me if you need solid information about reasonable international health insurances, allright.

Hi Mike

Are you accepting e-mails?

PM me if possible.

Gregca. one of your clients from the past.

If you have any questions about it or need independend info. Call Barbara Zahn on 08341-2733 between 9 and 12 and she can clarify most of your questions.
She has set me up some time ago with a prefect package (even some part tax income deducatable) and specializes in foreigners who need German insurance converage.

G.

Or call/PM Starshollow.. he has been providing some excellent information in here and other threads - a hell of a lot more than other advertisers have been doing - and seems to know his stuff, or at least able to get the answers..

Excellent stuff from Starshollow!

I will be visiting Munich next Monday and Tuesday and will be discussing these issues with colleagues. We will be staying at the Holiday Inn Effnerstr, 81925 Munich.

I have a number of appointments already but if anyone wants to try and arrange a meeting for personal advice please contact me. Mike Woodiwiss 02432-80365.

FWIW yes, that would technically apply to me (self-employed/freelancer, US citizen, permanent residency visa), though I'm already in the Künstlersozialkasse someone else mentioned (I'm a graphic designer and web designer) and thus 'pflichtversichert'. So I don't think much would change for me, in particular because it's actually hard to get out of the KSK once you're in AIUI (not that I want to). Anyway my situation is admittedly pretty rare.

One nitpick, though: Correct me if I'm wrong, but AFAICS no one is making foreign insurance *illegal* in Germany. It may be redundant under the new rules, but it's not *illegal*. If the German government suddenly decided to require everyone to own a German car, that doesn't prevent anyone from buying a Toyota. I imagine what will happen is BUPA et. al. will just start offering supplemental insurance instead, like they do in the UK and Ireland.

Cheers,

Fairfax71

Fairfax is correct: outlaw is to strong a word, but it could become eventually redundant for freelancers who are not coming from EU-countries (and iceland, Norway and Siwtzerland) after 2009.

Lets hope that a lot of this reform disolves over 2007 and 2008 when it turns out that many things have not been thought through and are not practical.
I guess both side of the Grand Coalition gov. in Berlin hope to win the next election and be able to turn the table on the reform according to their own grand designs. how did Jean Paul phrase it: I am not sure if it will get better when it changes, but I know it has to change if it is supposed to get better!

Cheerio

UPDATE: The German Upper House (Bundesrat) passed the proposed reforms on 16 February, despite objections from some major Lände (States). It now only needs the signature of the Bundespresident for these to become Law on 1 April 2007 and the main measures to come into effect on 1 January 2009.

It would be controversial for the Bundespresident NOT to sign - although he has in the past, and these Reforms are still very controversial If it does get his signature, there is a still a chance the measures may be modified before they come into effect during the run up to 1 January 2009 or, if and when the present Grand Coalition government is replaced in the future (as it surely must be), by either a single party or simpler coalition.

As absurd as this may sound: this is the first major reform of a coalition governement in Germany I know of, where both parts of the coalition hope that the major parts never see the light of day and that somehow the reform will stall or be delayed long enough so that after a possible landslide after the election in 2009 in one direction or the other the winning party can change it all over again.

Should the SPD win, we can most likely expect a compulsory public health insurance for every one, citizen and residents, even all groups who have been free of it so far since they believe this is the only way to safe the public health insurance instead of looking at the real deficiencies of the system. With the CDU/CSU we will have to see, but most likely they will step back from a number of the "reforms" that make life more complicated already, especially if paired up again with the FDP in a coalition governement. But I reckon this is more for a thread in the political department of TT...

Have a great day and ALAAF/HELAU, join the mad crowd!

During a recent conversation a client told he had considered leaving Germany and retiring to the Caribbean. He acknowledged that there may be less sophisticated health services there, but then, philosophically added, that if things continue to develop the way they are in Germany, then he may as well be ill in the Caribbean and not receive sophisticated treatment, than remain in Germany and not be able to afford it!

I"ve heard this before but how is possible to have 300.000 people with out health insurance, this is Europe not America. I mean I can travel anywhere in the EU
and get free heath care. I always understood Germany as the home of welfare state so having people without health care coverage seems well, ungerman.

From your website "German laws, rules and regulations are the most complicated in the world" how true it is.

Tim Hortons man: I did some research recently on this topic since I believe(d) that there must be a solution for those people out there, if not with German insurances than maybe with international insurances.
My research came up with the following result: about 2/3 of the 300.000 people currently without a health insurance in Germany are victims of a glitch in the socalled HARTZ IV legislation. The have been unemployed for long time and have been with social benefits for some considerable time. Since the merger of "Sozialhilfe" and "Arbeitslosengeld" through the Hartz laws, some of the peope who have received health insurance on state subsidies in the past under "Sozialhilfe" are now out of the eligibility for state subsidy supported public health insurance. However after 1st April of this year, if they had been insured in public insurance in the past they will have a chance to get back into the public healt insurance. Problem here appears to be that the costs for this gobble up virtually all their state social payments under Hartz IV. Since these people have to live on 300-400 EUR per month, changing into a international health insurance obviously is also not a viable option. But it appears that this issue is being adressed in Berlin. Just shows that the whole social welfare system in German has become so complicated that even the experts in politics and governement can not oversee and anticipate all results from changes of the law anymore. My political recommendation for a long time (and the same would be true for the tax laws) abandon the whole complicated system and install a complete new system from scratch, perhaps with a "Bürgergeld" instead of all the different social welfare benefits and subsidies. The current system only encourages those smart enough to play with it to be free-riders and does not help those really in need efficiently. A shame for a rich country like ours, addmittingly.

There is another group, about 30.000 to 80.000 people strong according to the different sources. These are former or still active freelancers and selfemployed people in Germany who at one time in economicly bad times could or would not pay their monthly premiums for private health insurance for 2-3 month and than get kicked out of the insurance. Once this has happened to you, you found yourself between a rock and a hard place: the public system won't accept you after some years of private insurance, the private insurances in Germany all have a block in their application forms where they ask if ever a private health insurance has been cancelled on you. If you check the box for yes, you a virtually blacklisted and will not be accpeted. If you decide to simply not tell the truth and at any later point of time they find out you lied, they can cancel the contract forthwith and even refuse to pay your bills. These people too have legally the right since April 1st to get back into their old contracts and starting 2009 they can switch into a kind of basic contract streamlined according to the coverage of public insurance. However, the old contract, often signed in times when business and money were running well, might still be too expansive for some of them today and even in 2009 it is quite likely from the phrasing of the new law that the monthly premium for the basic coverage contracts will be close to 500.- EUR/month. For these people an international insurance now/until 2009 or even over 2009 might be a better solution until they can afford to really get back into the German insurance system.

What is still unclear is, how the changes in law around 2009 will affect the ExPat freelancer/selfemployed crowd. The main question is: will international insurances be allowed/accepted under the "compulsory insurance" rule of the new law or not. I am currently trying to get a definite answer from the authorities for all of you. My guess is that for all EU-citizens the answer will be "yes" and for the people with citizenships from outside the EU it will be "no", but this is just a wild guess for now.

I'll keep you posted... as always,

Cheerio