Regulation

• The Swiss health insurance reforms require the Federal Office of Public Health to regulate insurance companies, including their rates. Although the government prohibits insurance companies from profiting off of the base-level mandatory insurance, the companies can make money from selling expanded, supplemental policies.
  
  

Costs and Coverage

• Swiss residents pay annual deductibles in addition to co-insurance for the mandatory coverage, and insurers can't charge more for preexisting conditions. For supplemental insurance, residents can receive discounts for healthy lifestyle choices or if they visit doctors infrequently. The government subsidizes health insurance for low-income families, and aims to keep costs below 10 percent of a family's income.
  
  

Access

• Both public and private hospitals serve patients in Switzerland. Residents with compulsory insurance can only seek care at government-subsidized public hospitals. People with additional insurance can visit private hospitals, which negotiate costs with the insurance companies.
  
  

History

• The 1994 reforms replaced a law from 1911 that allowed insurance companies to discriminate against high-risk residents. The 1911 law, despite setting a minimum coverage level offered by insurance companies, stopped short of requiring all residents to purchase health care.
  
  

Quality

• Swiss people generally live longer than Americans, with an average life expectancy of 82, compared to 78 in the U.S. They also have more doctors, nurses and technology like MRI units per one million people than Americans, according to Duke University's school of business. However, relentlessly high costs have spurred continued debate in Switzerland about how to improve the system.