Academic and health insurance research updates in Germany and Switzerland

At the Free University of Berlin, Dr. Ferdinand Weber and Dr. Jonas D. Brinkmann have joined the department as substitute professors as of October 1, 2026. Dr. Weber, specializing in public law and the internationalization of the legal order, previously held positions at the University of Göttingen, the University of Bremen, and Bucerius Law School. He aims to focus his teaching on state law and the development of institutions.

In Switzerland, researchers from the WWZ have conducted a follow-up analysis of health insurance premium burdens using Helsana data. A previous study suggested that the relative premium burden remained constant across all income groups between 2016 and 2023, despite an 11.9 percent increase in total premiums paid per household. Following critiques regarding household size, cost-sharing, and the use of gross versus disposable income, the researchers have performed a more in-depth evaluation of the data.