EGK insurance card
- You will receive your new insurance card from the start of your insurance. This means that if you are insured with us from January, you will receive your insurance card at the end of December.
- Valid as proof of Federal Health Insurance Act (KVG) cover at pharmacies, doctors and hospitals.
- Entitlement to emergency treatment for accident and illness within Europe in accordance with the social security provisions and tariffs in the country where you are staying.
Here we answer your questions:
The front side of the card contains administrative information such as surname, first name, sex and date of birth of the insured person, as well as the name and FOPH number of the health insurer. It also includes a 20-digit insurance card number (VeKa no. in accordance with the EU standard) and the 13-digit AHV number. This information is also stored on the microprocessor and can be read by a service provider using a chip card reader. The front side of the card also shows the insurer’s contact details and the emergency telephone number of the health insurer in Switzerland and abroad.
You will find the European health insurance card for use in Europe (blue reverse side) and your EGK insurance number on the reverse. Information on using the insurance card and compulsory health insurance coverage in the EU/EFTA region can be found here
The emergency number is printed on the front of your insurance card. In the myEGK app, you can find the emergency number under “Contact”.
Your call will be answered by Allianz Global Assistance.
You need the number for emergencies abroad. If you call this number from Switzerland, the call will be answered. However, it will take longer to alert the number 144.
Will costs be incurred?
- The service is free of charge for insured persons with KVG basic insurance and EGK-SUN supplementary insurance.
- The service is free of charge for insured persons with EGK-SUN insurance (even if they do not have KVG insurance with EGK).
- Persons with KVG insurance (without supplementary insurance with EGK) will be informed by Allianz Global Assistance that services such as repatriation, for example, are subject to payment. You will be asked if you have other travel insurance that covers this service.
Please note:
Persons with EGK-TelCare insurance have to call the Medgate number in Switzerland: 0800 800 735.
Your European Health Insurance Card is on the reverse of your insurance card. In the event of an emergency in another European country, this entitles you to be treated in accordance with the social security provisions and tariffs in the country you are staying in.
The insurance card cannot be used in non-European countries.
If necessary, check your supplementary insurance cover when you go abroad. It may make sense to take out additional travel insurance in some circumstances. You can find out more about these here:
If you have installed the “myEGK” app on your smartphone, you will be able to access the Vicard, the virtual insurance card, from July onwards. This will allow you to identify yourself at around 5,000 service providers, even if you are not carrying your insurance card with you. Data on your policy can be transmitted to the system in your practice, hospital or pharmacy using a QR code or the bar code displayed there.
You can also store all your family members’ insurance cards in the app if they are also insured with EGK-Gesundheitskasse.
Your insurance card may only be used by you personally. If you lose your card, you should therefore contact the agency responsible for you without delay.
An expiry date is printed on the front and reverse of your insurance card. We will send you a new insurance card when your existing card expires. You should then destroy your old insurance card immediately.
If you have taken out supplementary insurance with EGK and applied for KVG basic insurance with another insurance company, you will have been issued with the EGK VVG insurance card. This card is used to provide and verify the requisite information about your EGK supplementary insurance: for example, at a pharmacy when you are collecting your prescription or in hospital, when you are choosing which type of hospital ward you would like to stay in.
Unlike the KVG insurance card, the reverse of this card is white and therefore cannot be used as a European health insurance card. You should carry it with you anyway, because the SOS telephone number of EGK Assistance is printed on the front and can provide you with important services in an emergency.
Would you also like to register your basic insurance with EGK? Find the right insurance model for you here.
If you switch your basic insurance to another insurer, you must destroy your EGK insurance card immediately.
The virtual insurance card
If you have installed the “myEGK” app on your smartphone, you will be able to access the Vicard, the virtual insurance card, from July onwards. This will allow you to identify yourself at around 5,000 service providers, even if you are not carrying your insurance card with you. Data on your policy can be transmitted to the system in your practice, hospital or pharmacy using a QR code or the bar code displayed there.
You can also store all your family members’ insurance cards in the app if they are also insured with EGK-Gesundheitskasse.
