CSS study: Demographic change is not a relevant cost driver
Published: Tuesday, Jul 16th 2024, 13:20
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According to a new study by health insurer CSS, the ageing population is not a relevant cost driver in the healthcare sector. According to the report published on Tuesday, only one-seventh of the rising costs can be attributed to demographics.
The CSS Institute for Empirical Health Economics calculated the average costs per capita. According to this, per capita healthcare costs have risen by CHF 579 to CHF 3975 over the past ten years. According to the data, the main driver was technological progress. New medicines accounted for almost a third of the increase in costs.
Medicines newly included in basic insurance since 2012 led to additional costs of CHF 180 per person, as reported by CSS. By contrast, expenditure per insured person fell by CHF 33 for medicines that were already available in 2012.
According to the study, more than half of the cost growth occurred in the outpatient doctor and hospital sector. In contrast, the costs for inpatient treatment fell over the ten years under review.
Of the total average per capita cost increase of CHF 579, CHF 315 was attributable to the outpatient doctor and hospital category. An additional CHF 147 was attributable to pharmacy and medication, CHF 117 to laboratory and physio, CHF 22 to nursing care and CHF 35 to other reasons. The inpatient hospital category decreased by 57 francs.
The data from CSS was analyzed. With over 1.53 million insured persons, the company is the largest basic insurer in Switzerland. The analysis took into account basic insurance data for the years 2012 to 2021.
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