Substitute Fund

Ersatzkassen include as health insurance for public health insurance in Germany . According to Section 168 (1) SGB V, they are defined as "health insurance companies that existed on December 31, 1992, with which insured persons can obtain membership until December 31, 1995 by exercising their right to vote."

The term "substitute fund" has historically arisen from the situation that initially after the establishment of social insurance by Bismarck, every citizen subject to compulsory insurance was assigned to a compulsory professional insurance (a primary fund ) (e.g. craftsmen to the guild health insurance funds ), but he was assigned one of the previous ones as a substitute for the compulsory assignment registered relief funds already voluntarily organized , provided that such a fund was professionally responsible for him. Around 1900 there were around 1,500 relief funds in Germany. With the Reichsversicherungsordnung (RVO), the auxiliary funds had to apply for approval as a substitute fund and have at least 1,000 members until 1914. In 1936, a substitute fund had to be limited to either salaried employees or blue-collar workers and was not allowed to accept any new non-insurable members.

As a result, spin-off private health insurance associations took on these members who were entitled to insurance. Since the re-approval of the replacement funds after the end of the Second World War, the insurance conditions have developed in many ways. The self-administration of the substitute funds has been elected by their members in the social elections since 1953 . Since 2009, following a merger with a health insurance company of a different type of insurance company, the representatives' meeting of the new insurance company has been made up of equal numbers of employer and member representatives, even if it remains the substitute insurance company.

The Association of Replacement Funds (vdek) is the interest group for replacement funds at the federal and state level.

Individual evidence

↑ On the auxiliary funds in the 19th century cf. Collection of sources on the history of German social policy from 1867 to 1914 , Section II: From the Imperial Social Message to the February Decrees of Wilhelm II (1881–1890) , Volume 5: The statutory health insurance and the registered auxiliary funds , edited by Andreas Hänlein, Florian Tennstedt and Heidi Winter, Darmstadt 2009; see. Collection of sources on the history of German social policy from 1867 to 1914 , III. Department: Expansion and differentiation of social policy since the beginning of the New Course (1890–1904) , Volume 5, The statutory health insurance , edited by Wolfgang Ayaß , Florian Tennstedt and Heidi Winter, Darmstadt 2012.

[1] On the auxiliary funds in the 19th century cf. Collection of sources on the history of German social policy from 1867 to 1914 , Section II: From the Imperial Social Message to the February Decrees of Wilhelm II (1881–1890) , Volume 5: The statutory health insurance and the registered auxiliary funds , edited by Andreas Hänlein, Florian Tennstedt and Heidi Winter, Darmstadt 2009; see. Collection of sources on the history of German social policy from 1867 to 1914 , III. Department: Expansion and differentiation of social policy since the beginning of the New Course (1890–1904) , Volume 5, The statutory health insurance , edited by Wolfgang Ayaß , Florian Tennstedt and Heidi Winter, Darmstadt 2012.