Health Insurance in Germany
Statutory (GKV) vs private (PKV) health insurance — and how to choose a Krankenkasse.
GKV vs PKV: statutory versus private health insurance
Health insurance is mandatory in Germany. Most employees are automatically enrolled in the statutory system (GKV); the private system (PKV) is only accessible above an income threshold and requires careful consideration.
How to choose a Krankenkasse
Within GKV, you can choose your insurer (Krankenkasse). TK (Techniker Krankenkasse), AOK, and Barmer are the three largest, each with different contribution add-on rates and service offerings.
Registering with a Hausarzt and your insurance card
Once enrolled with a Krankenkasse, you receive a Gesundheitskarte (health insurance card) needed at every appointment. You should register with a local Hausarzt (GP) who acts as your primary care coordinator.
Prescriptions, e-prescriptions and pharmacies
Germany has moved to the electronic prescription (e-Rezept) system. Pharmacies (Apotheken) are the only place to fill prescriptions — supermarkets do not sell prescription medicines.
Medical emergencies in Germany
112 is the single emergency number for ambulance and fire across all of Germany (and the EU). For non-life-threatening urgent care, the out-of-hours GP service (Ärztlicher Bereitschaftsdienst) is reached on 116 117.