Mental health cuts
The government is going to make the necessary cutbacks in mental health care. The personal contribution for treatment by a psychologist changes. The reimbursement for the number of treatments for simple psychological care is also adjusted in the basic package.
Primary psychologists offer help with all kinds of minor psychological or social problems. You pay a personal contribution for this. The personal contribution will increase to 20 euros per consultation. A personal contribution of 50 euros applies for an internet treatment program (e-health). The maximum number of consultations reimbursed by the health insurance will be reduced from eight to five. Your additional health insurance may reimburse these costs in whole or in part. It to compare different supplementary insurance policies can therefore be beneficial in that regard.
If you need more specialized help, you can turn to second-line psychological care: a health care psychologist, a clinical psychologist or a clinical neuropsychologist. They treat more complex psychological problems such as ADHD, depression or a Anxiety Disorder. For second-line psychological care, everyone will pay a personal contribution for diagnosis and treatment. The personal contribution applies per calendar year and is one hundred euros for treatments of up to one hundred minutes and two hundred euros for treatments lasting longer than one hundred minutes.
Contribution
There is a separate personal contribution for a stay in a GGZ institution. This applies to all insured persons aged eighteen and older. The personal contribution starts from the second month of residence in a mental healthcare institution and amounts to 145 euros per month. This is in addition to the personal contribution you pay for treatment during your stay in the GGZ institution.
The personal contribution is in addition to the deductible. You first pay the personal contribution. With this you pay part of the costs of care. The other part is paid by the insurer. You must pay the compulsory deductible yourself of the total costs in a calendar year that the health insurer reimburses. Your health insurer will settle this with you.
In some situations you do not have to pay a personal contribution. Children under the age of eighteen do not pay a personal contribution. Even if you undergo crisis treatment (DBC) or are admitted involuntarily on the basis of the Special Admissions Act in psychiatric hospitals, you do not pay a personal contribution.
Other changes
If you do not keep an appointment and do not cancel on time, the practitioner can send an invoice for this. You have to pay that bill yourself and you will not get the money back from the health insurer. This is already the case for primary psychological help.
Treatment of adjustment disorders (psychological stress in the event of important events) is no longer reimbursed from the basic package. Insurers could offer supplementary insurance for this care from 2012 onwards.
When choosing a health insurer, it is especially important to pay attention to the supplementary package. If you are being treated by a psychologist, it is wise to look at the number of sessions that are reimbursed. The more the better. It is wise to have different insurance policies to compare before you switch. This can save a lot of money.
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