 A single day on a neurosurgical intensive care ward in the USA can cost
up to 30,000 dollars. According to the German Social Security Code, it
is the employer who
must bear the costs
in this case - and they can be considerable: a
fractured ankle joint sustained by falling from a scaffold, for
instance, complete with all-inclusive hospital treatment for six days
can cost 12,000 dollars in the USA, as compared with a mere 1800 euros
in Germany.
A single day on a neurosurgical intensive care ward, for instance
following an accident at work with serious head injuries, can cost
between 16,000 and 30,000 dollars in the USA - instead of just 1100
euros in Germany.
Since April 2003, DKV Deutsche Krankenversicherung in Cologne is
offering an all-inclusive no-cares package called "Globality" to
protect against precisely such risks. It is open to employees who are
sent abroad for at least one year. Its benefits go far beyond those of
the Anglo-Saxon competitors with whom employers used to have to insure
both the company and its employees in the past. As Thomas Merten, head
of the DKV Globality Team, explains, there are no "qualifying periods"
for pregnancy, no age restrictions and no exclusion of crisis regions
for "Globality". Only in the case of the USA is it necessary to effect
insurance under the special tariff for this high-price target region.
Supplementary benefits are individually compiled and negotiated for
each contractual partner.
The employer can consequently choose between two different basic
packages: one provides for additional benefits in the case of inpatient
treatment in the country concerned, as in the case of foreign travel
health insurance. The other basic package provides comprehensive cover
including outpatient and dental treatment.
Premiums are calculated not only on the basis of age, sex, duration of
the mission abroad and country visited, but also on the type of
employment: "After all, the insurance needed by someone working on an
oil platform will be different from that of a manager on land," says
Thomas Merten. Companies seeking insurance for 20 or more employees at
the same time also enjoy another advantage, for the insurer waives the
individual health check for existing medical conditions and chronic
disorders in this case.
For more personal advice please contact:
Peter Kunz
DKV
 Author: Anja Scholzen
"bild der wissenschaft plus"
2003
pp. 38-39
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Finance 
