The Healthcare System in Germany: 8 Things I DIDN'T know 🏥 

I love the way how yvonne keeps looking at you while you speaking 😂

Actually the question if you get a private or a public health insurance - if you can choose because of your income or your employment status - is no question. If you're smart, you stick to public insurance. Private insurance lure you in with really low premiums when you are young - and therefore have a low risk profile - but they will really cash in when you get old or become chronically ill. A retired person will pay easily more than 800 € per month for private insurance, while he will only pay like 250 € or so for public insurance. The problem is, once you've switched to private insurance, it is quite difficult to get back into public insurance (it's possible though, but that usually involves a job change), and when you reached 55 years of age, you cannot switch back for good. If you are in public insurance and want to get the (mostly irrelevant) additional benefits of private insurance, you can always get additional private insurances which will pay for a 1-person bed bedroom, gourmet meals or exclusive treatments by the medical head honcho and things like that.

The thing with antibiotics is that there is a limited range of different kinds. Bacteria are getting immune against certain kinds of antibiotics over time, and that’s why we try to use them only if really needed, so that the different kinds aren’t “used up” any time soon.

I like the way you guys are sharing expat and local perspective and knowledge in a simple and honest way. Kudos.

I literally have no plans to move to Germany anytime soon I just really like learning through your videos and listening to you both talk. Both your personalities are fun to watch on camera but Yvonne gets me every time with her real bluntness. 😂🤣👏🏻❤️

Thank you ladies, I love your blog and you guys are doing a great favour to all expats who are planning to settle in Germany. Keep up the great work. Cheers!

As always you 2 are absolutely delightful and once again I have received valuable information!

Simple , efficient, effortless but always with perfect smile. Great content. 👍

Thanks a lot for creating this content! Super helpful. Love watching your videos!

Your videos are really informative. Great work. Keep it up

You two are the greatest. Thank you for the information.

Great job you two. Funny yet informative. I watched a few videos on the German healthcare system but you ladies broke it down clearly and perfectly.

Indeed one of the best channel to know detailed information about Germany, point to point (without any stupidity). Keep it up.

I have used Feather based on your referral. Now I’m really happy with my current insurance provider, much better service and speaks English. Thank you. Jen and Yvonne.

Love you all. Very informative.

I've literally binge watched all the videos on the channel! Such amazing content for a new comer to Germany! Thank you so much

If you don't have health insurance in D, you have to retroactively pay all premiums in one go from the time this was discovered, plus a penalty surcharge. If an employer lets you work without insurance, they are committing a crime

your videos are really helpful ! keep up the good work

Chefarzt in British English is called the senior consultant and Oberarzt is called the consultant and Assistent Arzt is called a junior doctor.

Hello girls I love your contents!!! Extremely helpful ❤

Sharing the room with 3 other peoples depends on the hospital. My wife on public health insurance was in a room with 2 beds only, because in that specific hospital they had only rooms with 2 beds.

IIRC (it was at least 9 years ago, since I got a new employee) the employer has to register a new employee with the insurance company, the employee tells him. From that time on the employer has to pay insurance (about half of it is deducted from the salary) and the employee is insured. He will get his insurance card by mail and he can use it until he changes the insurance company (or it expires and he gets a new one).

Hey JY, I watched this vid and I think/hope I used your link and signed up with feather. Thanks for the video. You two rock!

4:20 Some insurance companies let you "park" your private health insurance for a small yearly fee, e.g. if you were as freelancer privately insured and got now e.g. a halftime job and your pay is less than the "Beitragsbemessungsgrenze" (earnings ceiling), so you can change to a public health insurance (mostly at an associate company - many insurance providers have a private and a public branch in the form of associate companies - but you can even change later to another provider). But you have to pay that fee additional to the contributions for the public health insurance - forever. 5:30 "Multi-berth" is nowadays in most hospitals a 2-bed- or maybe 3-bed-room, but not all berths will be used at normal times. Older hospitals do have sometimes 4- or 5-bed rooms, but as a rule hospitals will be reconstructed every 2 to 3 decades, and they will reduce the number of berths per room then. As "private patient" you can choose to have a single room, but you have to pay for it (and the insurance should then repay the amount to you, but you have to advance the money).

Thank you for the explanation. I think one of the points that were missing is how to find doctors/clinics that have an agreement with a certain public/private insurance company. Maybe it can be an idea for a video in the future? with details on how to choose doctors, ,how to book an appointment, how the medical bill is payed through health insurance, etc.

It just depends on the hospital how many people share a room. Many hospitals have 2bedrooms, at older ones 3 or 4 people share a room. Sometimes an additional person will join the room if the hospital is crowded for whatever reason. I was in hospital two weeks before. The clinic has 2bedrooms. I could have paid a private fee of 87 € per night to get a room just for me, but i am not sure if it is depending on availability. If they are overcrowded and ill people won t get a room, it could not be right that others get a room alone.

It ist easy to leave the private Insurance: Just work for a Minimum of one month for a Minimum of 20 hours per week, May be as a "Pflegehelfer*in", and you are back in the public system. The Key ist to work in a "Sozialversicherungspflichtiges Beschäftigungsverhältnis" 😉

Well, theoretically you can be uninsured in Germany. You'd have to be a freelancer, or self-employed, or someone who once made a lot of money so you'd decided to get private insurance, instead of the public insurance. Then something changes in your job status, ie you don't make enough money any more to pay your insurance fees. So after some time your PRIVATE insurance company kicks you from the insurance for not paying your fees. But since your status remains self-employed or freelancer, you could result in being uninsured. As you probably will be unable to pay your unemployment fees as well, if you can't pay your insurance fees either, you will drop through the safety net in Germany, as you also wouldn't get unemployment benefits. Because once you leave the public insurance and enter private insurance you normally can't go back to public insurance again. So, pro tip number 1 for anyone thinking about being a freelancer or self-employed finding yourself without health insurance: shouldn't it work out for you, try to find ANY kind of official employed job with an employer, and you can return to the public insurance. It doesn't matter how crappy the employment is, be certain to get an employed job for at least a few months. Then you are eligible again to return and remain in the public insurance even if you are later unemployed again, in which case the government will pay your insurance fees for you from your unemployment benefits. Pro tip number 2: get yourself a Krankenhauszusatzversicherung, a hospital supplementary insurance. These are very very cheap. This allows you to choose a single bed room on admittance, and depending on the provider for this type of insurance can net you some additional benefits as well. Such as choosing the Chefarzt / chief doctor, or Hauptchirug / chief surgeon of the hospital, instead of a secondary crew. This helps if you want a well-known specialist to do the medical procedures instead of another, possibly less well known and specialised doctor (or team) to take care of you. Or these supplementary insurances will also cover the Krankenhaustagegeld, the 10€ per day (up to 240€ per year of hospital stay), or some other minor fees like special TV stations or other luxury items you might want in your room. But these are much more flexible in what you want, and obviously changes your fees.

AC is a germ spreader if not maintained properly and continously. So most clinics will refrain to go for this option. I would normally always opt for a room with more people. It can get boring if you don't. Getting bugged by the others? simply use hearing protection.

Very good information

Very good content!

You only mentioned one important advantage of statutory health insurance in one sentence. In the statutory health insurance, family members without their own income are automatically also insured. In private health insurance, each person must be insured individually for a fee.

Very enlightening to watch you talk about the differences in Germany - until climate-change started to show, Germany was a country with fairly moderate climate, so AC was unknown. First buildings with AC were modern business-complexes. Nowadays AC gets more and more common in buildings and cars as well, but we have still a long way to go. Geographically Germany is the same latitude as southern Canada, NewYork City is the same latitude as Madrid/Spain. According to our belief in natural remedies remember, that 'modern medicine' is just 120 years old (starting with Robert Koch's discovery of bacteria), but natural treats have proven their value over thousands of years - the ancient egyptians even did successful brain surgery ~2,500 B.C.! Keep up your good work

Hey guys please can you make a sperate vlog for new students settle down in Germany which will cover most important key points which every one should know who is student in Germany a international student.

As for the add-on insurance for hospitals: Often you can choose to opt out of some of the amenities covered by the insurance, and get a per diem instead. Last time I was in hospital I took the single room, but opted out of getting treated by the head surgeon. This way I got back 30 EUR per day I was in hospital (and to be frank, I rather trust a surgeon who performs the operation every day, than someone who is spending most of the time managing the hospital). On the other hand, today you really have to do the math if these insurances are worth the expense. Many surgical procedures that 20 years ago you would have spend a week in hospital for are now more commonly done as outpatient surgeries, or with only one or two nights in hospital. I guess most people could survive one or two nights in the same room with a couple of snoring grannies next to them, if they can save 250 - 300 EUR per year.

Hi, great video! I wish you'd make a in-detail step-by-step what-to-do-if-you're-sick video, covering things like where to call? what kinds of things are covered by my insurance, how's the healthcare system hierarchy structured (like am I supposed to have like a family doctor, or when should I go to a clinic or to a hospital?). I moved recently and I got sick for the first time a few days ago and had no idea what to do 😂

May I add a point that I find special for Germany. That is the whole subject of pregnancy protection. This not only applies to health insurance but also to other social systems. As far as I know, you can stay at home once you become aware of the pregnancy and up to four (?) Weeks after the birth date. Wages are paid all the time or mostly paid (67%?). You can then go on "maternity leave" for 1, 2, 3 years and the job remains reserved for the mother. 100m from us in Switzerland it looks very different ...

Every time I watch a vlog like this I have to wonder whether Bismarck had any idea of what his decision in the 19th century would cause and that we would stick to them through centuries and even be happy about them.

I never have to make an appointment with my "Hausarzt", only with specialists like my neurologist.

Thank you so much for this video. I got rejected by all the companies when coming here(which is, so Ive been told afterwards, illegal) and in fear of the legal consequences, I was forced to sign up for a private insurance, hefty price, might I add, and which very often does not cover for the expenses, they always find a reason, and since I dont understand the system here, there is not much I can do about it. I am still hoping I will be allowed to get out of it after the contract expires, even though you said it is not allowed. But I am wandering how when theres an expiration date on the contract. Anyways, super grateful for this, but also other of your videos, theyre great and super practical. ☺️

I'm also from Guate and live in Hamburg. I have my stash of Gripetín, Migradorixina, Peptobismol, Antibiotics and stuff from home JUST IN CASE! And I've never been to the doctor in Germany (but I've only been here for a little over a year and I was in Guate this past June, so I went to both the doctor AND the dentist! and will go again (to the dentist, as least) next month when I go home for Christmas). But yeah, two completely different worlds for sure

Most people in Berlin says TK is the best provider for public insurance. I don't see TK listed as the recommended public insurance through Feather though. I probably going to talk to both and see which one gives the best option. In addition, most people said if we are planning to live in Germany forever / till retired and grow old, public insurance is the best option because private insurance will eff you up specially if you get bad medical condition once old in the future.

Technically you can have no insurance in Germany but its pretty convoluted since you would first have to earn enough money to get into private insurance and then drop the private insurance after that. Which probably is not gonna happen. But if it did you would have to pay for every visit to the doctor or hospital ect. for full

Algeria is a country with a lot of problems but my aunt got a 10years paid sick leave

Thanks for the information! I have a question about things you did not cover in the video. You only spoke about what happens when we are sick, but my question is what else is covered by the public health insurance? For example, are physiotherapy sessions included? What about mental health therapy, like meetings with a psychotherapist? Thank you

Antibiotics: Your body doesn't become immune if you take them too often. What can happen, is that you will breed immune bacteria if you stop taking the antibiotic too early (because only those bacteria, which are least susceptible to the antibiotic, will survive and reproduce) => don't stop taking the antibiotic when you feel better, but continue taking it as long as you were instructed.

I am aware of German affinity towards herbal medicine. In India we get many German tourists for Ayurvedic treatment.

thanks for the video ,wanted to ask what is the name of add-on to be treated as a private insurance?

Es wird immer die Berufsgenossenschaft vergessen. Sie zahlt bei Arbeits- und Wegeunfällen, sowie bei berufsbedingten Erkankungen. Sie zahlt die Behandlungen und Reha und eventuelle Renten. Man ist dort beitragsfrei versichert, eventuell sogar ohne Arbeitgeber, wie z.B Nachbarschaftshilfe beim Hausbau.

Another great video! A couple of questions: does German medical insurance pay for medical treatment when you're traveling around the world? Or, if you were severely injured while visiting another country with little medical infrastructure, do you have to be treated in that country - or do they pay to air-evacute (aka "medi-vac") you back to Germany?

You guys should also think of podcasts format it might be more interesting.

Hi! Do you know any Privat Versicherung that covers Derma service?

Thanks for the insights. Do you have any video talking about english speaking doctors or hospitals?

Ein Schnupfen kommt in drei Tagen , bleibt drei Tage und geht in drei Tagen.😅Der Doktor sagt immer viel trinken (Tee)🤧😅👍

Being cautious to antibiotics is reasonable. Good for Germany on that. :)

Hey Jen & Yvonne, I really enjoy watching your helpful videos! Thank you for making them filled with so much fun :D I had a question about TK health insurance. I have a blue card and I am insured under TK, my husband arrived a year later to me to Germany and he was also insured under my TK insurance as dependant. Later, he was employed, and then I found out, that he also had a health insurance deduction by TK from his salary. I am not sure if this is the way it should be. I mean, if he was already insured, why would he have to pay again from his salary?

I've been in Germany for 6 months now, and I've been amazed at the health insurance system. However, do you guys know how I can get to know the specifics of what a particular provider covers? Is there a specific document I can ask for?

Can you make a video on how to apply for public health insurance?

thanks, guys very informative. Would you guys recommend german travel and health insurance for students over and under 30 years of age?

in thing five you mayby mean: lohnfortzahlung im Krankheitsfall. :))

Hello ladies. I have a question about private insurance please: so for people over 40 years old coming to Germany as international students, we need to have private insurance (so I have read and researched). What I am not sure about is whether it has to be a German private Insurance or could it be based in my home country (I mean from a private agent but based in my home country)? Would you be able to advice in this please?

I still don’t understand why I am not receiving a document about my diagnostic? :))

Hi, is it possible to get both public healthcare insurance and private? Reason I asked is because I have pre-existing condition and I want whatever is not covered by public insurance to be covered by private.

German healthcare is fine, better than many other countries as long as you live within the system. Once you step out, it can become HELL. Eg. After my years in Guatemala, I wasnt allowed to have insurance at all because I didnt have a job and I wasnt rich. (Back then the obligation to have insurance wasn't in place yet.) Now I live in Australia where I have to pay an arm and a leg to go to the dentist. When I visit Germany, I am not insured at all. If I wanted to be insured without having a job, it would be very expensive. Or maybe they wouldnt let me, who knows. This stuff is super complicated. Thanks for the informative video.

Anything for Expats suffering from Rare Disease?

thx for making the video, i want to edit something: for me as a (german) nurse also working in germany its very important to say, that our healthcare system is only this good cause, cause a lot of people like me and other jobs in the hospital are paid very worse in comparison to the doctors. And the second important thing is, that we nurses are not as qualified, cause its not a bachelor degree, as every nurse in every other country in the world! which doesnt mean, that we are dumb :D

What is a house doctor and how do you get one? Like do you go to a doctor and ask them to be a house doctor?

So does that mean an international student above 30 who normally should have a private insurance can never have public insurance even after studies?

New friend here, stay connected 😊

So what if you are retired and RETURN back to Germany (still with German passport) after decades in USA? How to get health insurance then.

How much do health insurance and prescriptions cost as a percentage of average cost of living? Health insurance in the United States takes a huge percent of your income.

Do employer and employees pay health insurance half half in Germany and deducted from monthly salary?

At the beginning of the video, why is there a proper hand sign for numbers?

do i need to appoint family doctor? why is it necessary, if at all?

Is it only me or the system here is just not working ...it took me 4 months to get an appointment..and still waiting for the insurance approval 🙄 tons of bureacracy..I'm paying >400Euros (public) and the service I'm getting is crap ! In addition , personnel at the reception are very very rude ...like unusually rude ...and booking online is a mess not working either..... I'm loosing my mind and now thinking about planning my holidays in other countries to get proper health care ...I'm in Berlin not sure if all Germany is having the same issues within the healthcare ..but really I'm very disappointed and shocked 😥

I still don't understand how insurance works in Germany. Been in Germany for some months

I am coming to Germany for studies, then can I take public health insurance?

The worst things is every where they are not interested to register our health card.

Don’t y’all have a video on just health insurance for expats moving to Germany.

A cold takes 14 days without doctor and 2 Weeks with a doctor.

Your AC inclination kills the planet. What cools your room - house heats up the outside. So simple it is.

I‘m so confused about the public or private health insurance🤔so this means that there is no free universal health cover in Germany? or is it a combination of both? 😵‍💫 why is there a private or public health insurance?

Getting surgery done by the chef would be hella interesting though

Antibiotika haben wir bereits genug im Schweinefleisch, damuss der Arzt nichtnoch extra was verschreiben.

I honestly hate that smoothly thing

👏🏼💯🙇🏼‍♂️💐🌈

germany made health insurance legally required in 2007, right before the 2008 global financial crisis - to expect low income earners to pay up to 20% of their monthly income, regardless of whether they need or use healthcare, is absolutely insane, please try to convince me otherwise. fellow germans, its simple: you need a wealth tax - you have MANY wealthy families in germany, der spiegel tracks them each year - these families have sucked wealth away from the german people (i know east and west deutschland is complicated, but its been 30 yrs so probs not as relevant anymore) germans need a publicly available basic healthcare system similar to australia. stop disproportionately + legally taxing lower income peeps when they may not even use the service, and start taxing your wealthy, they literally make hundreds of millions in PASSIVE income each year from assets. they do nothing for this. they were simply born into a wealthy family, some of which _have been tracking their family tree and wealth for 9 centuries_ am i crazy here? please try to convince me otherwise dont believe me? watch the DW doco on it, then please start talking to your german friends + family about 1: taxing the wealthy more, and 2: introducing a basic healthcare system that covers basic needs for all germans. this isn't cold war era anymore, germany is incredibly rich, germans deserve basic healthcare that doesn't leech off of the general population - again, expecting low income earners to pay up to 20% of their monthly income for a service they may not need or use is insane, especially when you have SO MANY DAMN WEALTHY PEOPLE EVERYWHERE FOR LITERAL CENTURIES OF HOARDED/INHERITED WEALTH srry i get frustrated when standing up for poor people

😂😂😂🤗🤗🤗❤️❤️❤️

LMFAO your ear falls off! Drink a tea!

German Healthcare: 🍷🍷

There are over 100k people in Germany who are not insured. If you make over 70k or are self employed it is voluntary. Might want to get that part a bit clearer

😂😂😂 Stucked with 2 grannies