Health insurers’ profits grew in 2012, exceeding €90 million, which is a third more than in the previous year. The private health insurer Dôvera, owned by the Penta financial group, achieved the highest profit, but the state-run Všeobecná Zdravotná Poisťovňa (VšZP) did well too, earning €26 million last year, the Sme daily wrote.
Insurers say that for now the owners will not retain the profits, and that the money will be directed to funds. If the state decides to purchase or expropriate private health insurance companies it might pay more for them due to their higher profits. The government of Robert Fico wants to create a single health insurer as early as next year, according to Sme.
The TASR newswire reported that last year, health insurers collected €3.7 billion, which is €214 million more than the previous year. All insurers on the market experienced a year-on-year increase, amounting in total to more than 6 percent. This stems from the Report on the State of Executing Public Health Insurance for 2012, acknowledged by the government on July 3. The SITA newswire also wrote that VšZP’s profits increased by €20 million, Dôvera’s profits by €8.6 million and Union’s profits by almost €6 million.
The total cost of health care rendered amounted to €3.5 billion in total, which is an increase of €142 million in annual terms.
(Source: Sme, TASR, SITA)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
