Health insurers CZ and VGZ lower their premiums for 2020

Health insurers CZ and VGZ are lowering the premium for their basic health insurance next year, by nearly 4 euros and 1 euro respectively, RTL Nieuws and NOS report. Basic insurance at Menzis will be one euro more expensive, the company said in an email to customers.

VGZ customers will pay 119.95 euros for the VGZ Ruime Keuze, the insurer's basic package, next year - one euro less than the current 120.95 euros. The same applies to the basic package at Unive, which falls under the same concern as VGZ. According to VGZ, it is able to lower its premium because it organized care better and more efficiently. VGZ also used part of its accumulated reserves to make the premium slightly cheaper.

CZ is lowering its premium by 3.85 euros to 120.95 euros. At Menzis the basic health insurance package will cost 123 euros next year, one euro more than this year. DSW, traditionally the first to announce its premiums, announced in September that it is increasing its premium by 6 euros to 118 euros.

Achmea, which covers brands like Zilveren Kruis, Interpolis and FBTO, is the only insurer that hasn't announced its premiums yet. The insurer has until midnight to do so.

It is important to note that discounts on collective health insurance is decreasing from 10 percent to 5 percent this year - a measure announced by Minister Bruno Bruins for Medical Care in 2018. Approximately two thirds of people in the Netherlands are collectively insured through their employers, associations, and other organizations. This means that for many people, healthcare costs were higher this year than last year in terms of the dent to customers' pocketbooks.

On Budget Day the government estimated that the basic health insurance premiums would increase by around 3 euros to an average of 118.50 euros per month. The government also announced that the healthcare deductible will not increase and remains 385 euros, and that the health care allowance for lower income groups will increase to 67 euros per year for single persons and 95 euros per year for families.

Now that the health insurance premiums were announced, people have until December 31st to switch packages or to another insurer if they wish.