Visana, based in

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

, is a

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

insurance company Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

specialized in

health insurance Health insurance or medical insurance (also known as medical aid in South Africa) is a type of insurance that covers the whole or a part of the risk of a person incurring medical expenses. As with other types of insurance, risk is shared among ma ...

and

accident insurance Accident insurance is a type of insurance where the policy holder is paid directly in the event of an accident resulting in injury of the insured. The insured can spend the benefit payment however they choose. Accident insurance is complementary to ...

. , the company served around 848,000 privately insured people and 16,500 insured companies, authorities and associations. In 2022, the Visana Group generated a premium volume of 3.6 billion

Swiss franc The Swiss franc, or simply the franc, is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) iss ...

s with 1,450 employees.

History

The company emerged in 1996 as a result of the fusion of the three health insurance funds KKB (founded 1870), Grütli (founded 1872) and Evidenzia (founded 1990) with the implementation of the new health insurance law. In 1998 the company made headlines in eight

cantons A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, th ...

. In reaction to this, the Federal Department of the Interior announced that it would "prevent Visana to be withdrawn from basic health insurance in individual cantons." In 2012 Visanas subsidiary company Vivacare took over the basic insurance business of the

Bernese Bernese is the adjectival form for the canton of Bern or for Bern. Bernese may also refer to: * Bernese German, a Swiss German dialect of Alemannic origin generally spoken in the canton of Bern and its capital, and in some neighbouring regions * ...

insurance group Innova. In 2019 Angelo Eggli, former managing director of Allianz Partners Schweiz, was elected as CEO and replaced Valeria Trachsel.

Areas of activity

The Visana Group is one of the largest Swiss health and accident insurers. It offers compulsory health insurance (OKP) in accordance with the Health Insurance Act (KVG), supplementary and property insurance in accordance with the Insurance Contract Act (VVG), accident insurance in accordance with the Accident Insurance Act (UVG) as well as pensions and car insurance. The company insures private customers (individuals and families) as well as corporate clients (companies, public institutions and associations). For the latter it offers, among other things, loss of earningsm and accident insurance. In addition, it also offers household contents. The range also includes building, private liability and legal expenses insurance. The Visana Group comprises eight companies. Visana AG, sana24 AG, vivacare AG and Galenos AG operate compulsory health care insurance and are subject to supervision by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). Visana Versicherungen AG operates the supplementary and accident insurance business and is subject to supervision by the

Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) is the Swiss government body responsible for financial regulation. This includes the supervision of banks, insurance companies, stock exchanges and securities dealers, as well as other fin ...

(FINMA). Visana Services AG is the service company, where all employees are employed. The Visana Plus Foundation owns 100 percent of the share capital of Visana Beteiligungen AG. It also supports health promotion and prevention projects.

References

{{Authority control Financial services companies established in 1996 Insurance companies of Switzerland 1996 establishments in Switzerland