Health insurance card

What is the health insurance card?

The health insurance card is your proof of basic health insurance. It tells doctors, pharmacies, hospitals and therapists which health insurer you are insured with and which number to bill under. Without the card, the practice has to enter your details by hand, and the bill is more likely to end up in the wrong place.

The card is part of compulsory health insurance under the Federal Health Insurance Act (KVG). Everyone who is required to take out insurance in Switzerland receives one. The exception is insured persons who live abroad and only receive benefits in Switzerland through international benefits assistance. The card is not a contract: which deductible, which insurance model and which supplementary insurance you have is set out in your insurance policy.

With most insurers, the back of the card carries the European Health Insurance Card. In that case the card number is the same on both sides.

How it works

Your insurer sends you the card as soon as you are insured with it. Seven items must be printed on it:

The same items are stored electronically on a chip. The insurer may also store electronically: your postal address, the insurer’s billing address, your insurance model, whether accident cover is excluded and, with your consent, details of your supplementary insurance.

With your consent, doctors and pharmacies may store medical data on the card: blood group, vaccinations, transplants, allergies, illnesses, medication, emergency contacts and a note that you have an advance directive. You can lock these data with a PIN and have them deleted at any time. The insurer may neither reward nor penalise you depending on whether you store data.

The card remains the property of the insurer. If your insurance ends or the card expires, you must return it on request. Some insurers also offer a digital card in their app; whether a practice or pharmacy accepts it is not regulated uniformly.

Legal basis

Art. 42a para. 1 KVG empowers the Federal Council to require an insurance card with the name and AHV number; under para. 2 it is used for billing, and under para. 2bis it can serve as a means of identification for the electronic patient record. Para. 4 allows personal data to be stored only with the consent of the insured person.

The details are set out in the Ordinance on the Insurance Card for Compulsory Health Insurance (VVK). Art. 1 VVK requires insurers to issue the card, Art. 3 VVK defines the printed data and allows the EHIC to be printed on the back, and Art. 4 VVK covers the electronic data. Art. 6–7 VVK govern the optional medical data and access to them, and Art. 9 VVK your right to information, correction and deletion. Under Art. 10 VVK, you must show the card when you receive benefits; if you do not and this causes extra work, the insurer may charge a reasonable fee. Art. 11 VVK states that the card remains the property of the insurer.

Example: switching insurer and a doctor’s appointment in January

Luca, 27, cancels his basic health insurance. His notice reaches the old insurer on 28 November, in time before the 30 November deadline. From 1 January he is insured with the new insurer. The new card arrives on 20 December.

What this means for you

• Always carry the card with you, including abroad if the back serves as an EHIC.
• Show it to every new healthcare provider, otherwise you risk a fee or wrongly addressed bills.
• After switching, check the expiry date and whether the back includes an EHIC.
• Make a conscious decision about emergency data. They can help in an emergency, but they remain optional.

If you want to keep your insurance documents in one place, you can store your policy, bills and comparisons in your customer account. The profiles under health insurers show which insurer offers which digital services. You can plan the switch itself with the deadlines and the cancellation letter.

Common mistakes

• Continuing to use the old card after switching. From the switching date, only the new insurer counts.
• Mistaking the card for a confirmation of insurance. For a visa, your employer or the authorities, you need a confirmation of insurance.
• Believing the card shows all your supplementary insurance. Supplementary cover only appears on it with your consent; your policy is what counts.
• Showing the front of the card abroad. Outside Switzerland, only the EHIC on the back counts, and only in the countries where it is valid.

How we handle your data is explained under data protection.