No two-tier medicine — equal access for equal need
As of: 2026-07-27
Anyone who needs medically necessary treatment should receive it — regardless of income, insurance model, canton of residence or language. This principle is the benchmark we apply to health policy proposals.
What this is about
Access does not follow from a benefits catalogue alone. It also depends on whether practices and outpatient clinics are reachable, whether appointments are available within reasonable time, and whether patients understand what they are entitled to.
We describe a direction, not a snapshot: differences in access develop gradually, often as a side effect of steering instruments that are individually justified in plausible terms.
Our position
Freie Ärzte Schweiz judges steering instruments by whether they leave access unchanged at equal medical need. We reject instruments that systematically differentiate waiting times or alternative offerings by ability to pay.
We deliberately avoid alarmist rhetoric and absolute claims. Instead of escalation we ask for impact measurement: whoever introduces a measure should disclose its effects on access.
What follows from this
In concrete terms: comprehensible criteria for access decisions, clear information for patients, and care planning that explicitly includes rural regions and primary care.
Physicians carry responsibility for an appropriate indication. That responsibility is the best protection against a medicine that distinguishes between groups of patients.