Prevention
CSS advocates as a health partner that all insured persons take responsibility for their health. This includes acting in a way that promotes health and taking preventive measures. CSS makes relevant products and services available to its insured persons.
The current system of prevention and health promotion has gaps: compared to the three pillars of medical healthcare (treatment, rehabilitation and care), prevention and health promotion are only partly enshrined in law; this separation of powers between the federal government, cantons and insurers has not yet been conclusively clarified. The result is a lack of control and coordination in many areas of disease prevention and health promotion, but also in terms of transparency regarding the services on offer and how they perform. The federal government's activities should be restricted to its mandate in accordance with Art. 118 of the Federal Constitution, which covers the combating of communicable diseases, the use of foodstuffs, therapeutic products, narcotics, organisms, chemicals and items that may be dangerous to health, and protection against ionising radiation. In the field of health and accident insurance however, prevention is the responsibility of the insurers and the cantons. They maintain institutions that are de facto financed by premiums (Swiss Foundation for the Promotion of Health, Swiss Council for Accident Prevention) and which implement and coordinate measures to promote health and to prevent occupational and non-occupational accidents and occupational diseases. The cantons are responsible for setting down prevention and health promotion measures in law, and for implementing them together with the communes.
CSS believes that prevention and health promotion should be given greater importance in today's system. Health insurers should also legitimately be able to help insured persons to promote their own individual health – and not be constrained by the current legal framework of medical prevention. Providing individual support in disease prevention and when someone falls ill is an aspect that is becoming increasingly important. CSS wants to do even more to boost the well-being and health of its clients.
As CSS sees it, prevention taxes financed by premiums must satisfy the requirement that the benefit to the insured persons of such measures can be proven and that the measures are directly related to the business of health insurance. Basically, insurers should also not be deprived of the opportunity of giving their insured persons incentives to take voluntary prevention measures.
Your health partner
As a health partner, we are committed to leading a healthy life, actively taking steps to regain one's health and developing a mindful approach to illness.
