DAK reports slight drop in sick‑leave rates in Rhineland‑Palatinate (Jan‑Jun 2026)

The DAK health insurance fund says its members in Rhineland‑Palatinate were sick‑listed slightly less often in the first half of 2026 than in the same period a year earlier. The overall sick‑leave rate fell by about 0.3 percentage points to 5.5 %, meaning roughly 55 out of every 1,000 employees were on medical leave each day.

Respiratory illnesses saw the biggest decline, cutting related absence days by almost a quarter to 176 days per 100 workers. In contrast, absences due to musculoskeletal problems and mental health issues rose, bringing total sick‑leave days to 187 per 100 workers. The average duration of a sick‑leave spell was 9.9 days, marginally longer than 9.8 days in the first half of 2025. The analysis used data from about 130,000 DAK‑insured employees, supplied by the Berlin‑based IGES Institute.