Berlin People with statutory health insurance and their employers have to be prepared for further increasing burdens. As early as July, millions of employees have less net from the gross – then the contribution for long-term care insurance increases noticeably. In January 2024, the net salary is likely to fall again, since statutory health insurance (GKV) is also set to become more expensive. At least that’s what Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has now announced.
Overall, social security contributions for childless workers could rise to 41.8 percent. The long-standing limit of 40 percent has thus been clearly exceeded. Calculations by the Leibniz Center for European Economic Research (ZEW) in Mannheim show what costs average and higher earners face.
The background is that the cash registers are threatened with a deficit again in 2024. The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds expects a gap of 3.5 billion to seven billion euros. Without intervention, this resulted in an increase in the average additional contribution of 0.2 to 0.4 percentage points.
The exact amount of the additional contribution for the 58 million members of the health insurance companies and 15.9 million non-contributory co-insured persons are determined by the health insurance companies themselves; they can deviate from the average. The total contribution also includes the general rate of 14.6 percent of wages shared between employer and employee.
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What costs average earners have to reckon with
For an average earner with a gross monthly wage of 3500 euros this would increase the annual contribution by EUR 84 (0.2 percentage points) to EUR 168, with the employer paying half.
In addition, from July the contribution rate for long-term care insurance will increase by 0.35 percentage points, childless people will even pay 0.6 percentage points more.
For childless employees and their company, this means an additional burden of a total of 252 euros per year on average. If you have children, you pay less. Overall, however, the contribution burden for employers and employees will increase by up to 420 euros in the coming year.
What costs higher earners have to reckon with
Higher earners expect significantly higher burdens. If the contribution assessment ceiling is adjusted to wage developments in the coming year, as usual, it would have to rise from the current gross monthly wage of 59,850 euros to 63,600 euros, according to the ZEW. That alone is an increase of 5.6 percent, which results from the nominal wage increase in 2022.
Added to this are the higher contributions. Anyone who earns above the contribution assessment limit will have to pay around 127 euros (0.2 percentage points) to 254 euros more in 2024, half of which is borne by the employer. Employees without children and their companies pay around 382 euros more for long-term care insurance, so the total is up to 636 euros more.
How much the contributions have increased in Lauterbach’s tenure
Since Lauterbach has been Minister, the statutory health and long-term care insurance will have increased in the extreme case by around 1,049 euros for higher earners and their employers in 2024, and by 693 euros for average earners.
At the beginning of 2023, the additional contribution to statutory health insurance rose by an average of 0.3 percentage points, and the contribution to long-term care insurance increased by 0.35 percentage points for childless people in 2022. The latter was decided by the previous government.
Criticism of increasing contributions
ZEW researcher Nicolas Ziebarth calls the rising contributions “problematic” – especially in view of the high inflation and previous jumps in contributions. He recommends consumers to use comparison portals and switch to a cheaper health insurance company. Politicians, on the other hand, must take the expenditure into account. FDP parliamentary group deputy Christoph Meyer also said that putting additional burdens on people and companies right now is the wrong way to go.
Always collecting only the contributors is bordering on refusal to work. Confederation of German Employers’ Associations
The Confederation of German Employers’ Associations, in turn, complained that “always collecting only those who pay contributions borders on refusal to work”. Structural reforms are necessary, otherwise it will become more and more expensive for employees and employers for the same services.
There are alternatives
In addition to the spending cuts demanded by economists and the FDP, the cash registers in particular are in favor of the federal government contributing more to the costs for those receiving citizen income. This would relieve the GKV by up to ten billion euros.
A separate increase in the contribution assessment ceiling is also under discussion, so that those on lower incomes are spared higher contributions.
A calculation by the employer-related institute of German industry, which was reported by the Handelsblatt, showed that increases in the contribution rate could be avoided if the limit were to rise to the level of the current compulsory insurance limit of around EUR 65,000 gross annual income. It describes the income from which employees can switch to private health insurance.
>> Read more: Higher contribution assessment ceiling would bring the health insurance companies billions
Among other things, the Greens parliamentary group Vice Maria Klein-Schmeink speaks out in favor of the step. In this way, people with high incomes contribute more to the financing, she said. The president of the social association VdK, Verena Bentele, said that a higher contribution would primarily affect people with low incomes in the face of inflation. Employers’ associations are vehemently opposed to a higher limit in order to avoid further burdens.
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