The detailed dental invoice informs the patient transparently about the following details:
The number of tax points denotes the equivalent value of an individual dental service. They can vary within a defined range depending on the individual expense.
The tax point value is the rate by which the tax points are multiplied. This is how the amount of the dental fee is calculated.
The laboratory costs are external costs which are reimbursed directly to the technician by the dentist and are added to the fee invoice without a surcharge.
The other costs, such as medication costs or special material costs, are shown separately as additional third-party costs.
The Federal Statistical Office publishes detailed figures on the costs and financing of the health care system every year. In 2020, the costs for dental treatment amounted to CHF 483.- per inhabitant (2010: CHF 481.- / 1995: CHF 377.-).
Dentist tariff Dentotar
On January 1, 2018, a revised dental tariff came into force for the billing of dental services. The Dentotar benefits catalog (Leistungskatalog des Dentotar) has been adapted to today’s treatment methods and the changed business reality of a dental practice.
The basic fee for workplace disinfection (item 4.0300) is charged per session and compensates for the additional effort required for quality assurance in sterilization.
The tax point value for billing with the UV/MV/IV tariff partners has been set at CHF 1.00. The tax point value for the private sector can be changed. In the private sector, however, the tax point value can be adjusted depending on the practice situation.
The Dentotar will be used for all service invoices except for the KVG. The KVG tariff has remained unchanged at CHF 3.10 since 1992, despite significant inflation and cost increases, because the health insurance companies categorically refuse to adjust it. What other service is provided today at a price that has not been adjusted to inflation for over 20 years, let alone increased in real terms!
Invoice by free agreement: in the private sector, the free agreement is permissible. In this case, the dentist agrees a fixed fee with the patient for a defined dental treatment.
Late effects of dental accident
The insured person has the burden of proof. In many cases, insurance companies refuse to pay for late consequences of an accident (including accidents at school). It is up to the insured to prove the connection between today’s treatment and the accident. This proof must at least establish the level of overwhelming probability, which is not always successful. In many cases, the documents relating to the accident are no longer available. If the insured cannot provide the proof to the level required by the Federal Insurance Court EVG, the assumption of costs ceases. It is therefore in the patient’s interest to retain the relevant documentation in the event of an accident.
