As a person living in Germany, you need to have health insurance. If you are not covered by health insurance, you will have to pay all the treatment costs yourself.

Which health insurance is the right one for me?

Whether you need to be covered by statutory or private insurance depends on your profession. Self-employed persons, freelancers and civil servants must take out private insurance. Employees and all others can take out statutory insurance. You decide voluntarily to take out statutory or private health insurance.

• All statutory health insurance companies in Germany
• All private health insurance companies

Once you have made your decision, contact your health insurance company directly. You will find links to and addresses of health insurance companies in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region on alvivi.net.

Finally, your health insurance company will issue you with a health card with a ten-digit insurance number. This number will stay the same for the rest of your life.

Now you have to sign your insurance card on the back.

If you are dissatisfied with your health insurance, you can change at any time. Once you have submitted your notice of termination, your insurance will be terminated with eight weeks' notice to the end of the month.

What is an electronic health card (eGK)?

With an electronic health card you can receive medical treatment. Each health insurance member receives an insurance card. You still have to hand in a photo for your health card or upload it online. For children under 15 years no photo is needed.

Visit to the doctor

Every patient is free to choose their doctor. A doctor is obliged to treat each patient.

Before you go to the doctor, you must make an appointment by telephone or in the doctor's office (some doctors also offer consultation hours without appointments). In urgent cases, you can also visit the doctor without an appointment. But then the waiting time will probably be a little longer.

At a doctor's appointment, you first present your electronic health card. Your data will be read in.

Usually you have to take a seat in the waiting room and wait until you are called by a doctor's assistant. You can leave your jacket, cap or umbrella at the cloak rack.

Family doctor

You voluntarily choose a general practitioner, your family doctor (Hausarzt) and, with the exception of emergencies, have him or her treat you if you are ill. If necessary, your family doctor will refer you to a specialist.

Medical on-call service

Are you seriously ill or in need of care and cannot go to the doctor? Or the doctor's office is closed and the treatment cannot wait until tomorrow? In such cases, your doctor can come to your home.

In an emergency, you can call an ambulance. The phone number is 112.

More information on the German health care system

The German health care system explained (Video)