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Five unexpected things covered by private health insurance in Germany

All health insurances in Germany, both private and public, are required to provide a certain level of cover. This includes the things you’d expect like prescription drugs, hospital in-patient care and an employee sick note; however, plenty of additional treatments often require extra payment.

Five unexpected things covered by private health insurance in Germany
LED therapy. Photo: Nikodah/Despositphotos

With ottonova private health insurance for expats earning €62,250+ a year coverage is much more comprehensive. It can be a real safety net while you’re living abroad – plus, you can claim certain things which may seem unusual to expats in Germany. Here’s a snapshot of what you can expect when you take out private health insurance with ottonova.

Natural healing methods

Conventional medicine isn’t always the answer; sometimes, alternative healing methods can be just what the doctor ordered. For instance, light therapy, which is among the natural healing methods covered by ottonova’s expat health insurance, has been found to be as effective as antidepressant medications for treating seasonal affective disorder. Other natural healing methods available for ottonova’s customers include heat treatments, speech therapy and massages (they really do have your back!). 

Psychotherapy

Photo: pressmaster/Depositphotos

Therapy can be pricey and, as a result, many people neglect their emotional wellbeing. When you’re covered by ottonova, you have no excuse to ignore your mental health. Depending on your tariff, you’ll be reimbursed up to 90 percent for each session of psychotherapy, a form of talk therapy which helps people to cope with emotional difficulties. There’s also no yearly session limit, in contrast to many other insurance providers.

Travel insurance

When you live overseas and are planning on taking a trip somewhere else, it’s important to check that you have the correct travel insurance. It’s reassuring to know that ottonova private health insurance covers you throughout Europe and for between 2-6 months outside of Europe, depending on your tariff. So all that’s left for you to worry about is what to pack in your suitcase.

Laser eye surgery

Vision correction surgery, also known as refractive and laser eye surgery, refers to any surgical procedure used to correct vision problems. Anyone who has struggled with their sight knows how life changing this surgery can be, but it’s also a big investment – unless it’s included in your private health insurance plan (which most often it isn’t). With ottonova, you can get between €250-€1,500 reimbursement per eye depending on your tariff and how long you’ve been insured.  

Photo: robertprzbysz/Depositphotos

Fertility treatments

Struggling to conceive is stressful enough without worrying about how to pay for fertility treatments. Infertility care is often not considered an essential benefit under many health insurance plans but with ottonova’s First Class and Business Class tariffs you can claim up to €3000 during the first three months of treatment, after which you can undergo unlimited treatment. 

As an added extra, all ottonova customers have access to the insurer's Concierge team. The English-speaking team can be reached via phone or the app to answer any health-related questions you have. They can even schedule doctor’s appointments for you, either in person or via video call which allows you to speak to a professional 365 days a year.

Click here to find out more about ottonova’s private health insurance for expats in Germany.

This article was produced by The Local Creative Studio and sponsored by ottonova.

HEALTH

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

Danish Minister for the Interior and Health Sophie Løhde has warned that, despite increasing activity at hospitals, it will be some time before current waiting lists are reduced.

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

The message comes as Løhde was set to meet with officials from regional health authorities on Wednesday to discuss the progress of an acute plan for the Danish health system, launched at the end of last year in an effort to reduce a backlog of waiting times which built up during the coronavirus crisis.

An agreement with regional health authorities on an “acute” spending plan to address the most serious challenges faced by the health services agreed in February, providing 2 billion kroner by the end of 2024.

READ ALSO: What exactly is wrong with the Danish health system?

The national organisation for the health authorities, Danske Regioner, said to newspaper Jyllands-Posten earlier this week that progress on clearing the waiting lists was ahead of schedule.

Some 245,300 operations were completed in the first quarter of this year, 10 percent more than in the same period in 2022 and over the agreed number.

Løhde said that the figures show measures from the acute plan are “beginning to work”.

“It’s positive but even though it suggests that the trend is going the right way, we’re far from our goal and it’s important to keep it up so that we get there,” she said.

“I certainly won’t be satisfied until waiting times are brought down,” she said.

“As long as we are in the process of doing postponed operations, we will unfortunately continue to see a further increase [in waiting times],” Løhde said.

“That’s why it’s crucial that we retain a high activity this year and in 2024,” she added.

Although the government set aside 2 billion kroner in total for the plan, the regional authorities expect the portion of that to be spent in 2023 to run out by the end of the summer. They have therefore asked for some of the 2024 spending to be brought forward.

Løhde is so far reluctant to meet that request according to Jyllands-Posten.

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