Co-payments from 2027: what changes – and what does not

Key facts at a glance

• From 1 January 2027, the co-payment rises to 7.50 to 15 euros per item – previously 5 to 10 euros
• For pads, ostomy bags and catheters, the monthly cap rises from 10 to 15 euros – also on 1 January 2027. The fact that the legal text has said 15 euros since 30 July 2026 is an editorial oversight; the insurance funds continue to apply 10 euros until the end of the year
• In hospital, 15 instead of 10 euros per day are due, for at most 28 days a year
• The burden limit of 2 percent – 1 percent for the chronically ill – remains
• A planned annual automatic adjustment did not make it into the law

“Co-payments rise by 50 percent” was everywhere in the summer. For people who permanently depend on incontinence, ostomy or catheter supplies, this is true – with one peculiarity: the legal text for their medical aids accidentally came into force in July, but is only applied from 1 January 2027. This article explains what applies when and where the confusion comes from.

Which law it is about

The Statutory Health Insurance Contribution Rate Stabilisation Act of 24 July 2026 was promulgated in the Federal Law Gazette on 29 July 2026. It changes co-payments in two places – and on two different dates:

• Article 1 number 12a raises the cap for medical aids intended for consumption from 10 to 15 euros. This number is missing from the list of provisions that only come into force in 2027 and therefore, by its wording, applies from the day after promulgation, 30 July 2026 – an oversight, more on this below.
• Article 1 number 23 replaces the general Section 61. Under Article 8 (2), it comes into force on 1 January 2027.

The new Section 61 SGB V reads in its first sentence:

“Co-payments to be made by insured persons amount to 10 percent of the dispensing price, but at least 7.50 euros and at most 15 euros; in each case, however, not more than the cost of the item…”

Until now it says “but at least 5 euros and at most 10 euros”. The percentage stays the same; the lower and upper limits are raised.

Consumable medical aids: an oversight in the law

For medical aids, the law does not work the same everywhere. The reason lies in the structure of Section 33 (8) SGB V:

• Sentence 1 regulates ordinary medical aids and refers to Section 61 sentence 1. If Section 61 rises on 1 January 2027, the co-payment there rises with it.
• Sentence 3 regulates medical aids intended for consumption and contains its own figure. It is exactly this figure that the Bundestag changed.

The amendment is short:

“In Section 33 (8) sentence 3, the words ‘10 euros’ are replaced by the words ‘15 euros’.”

According to the legal text, sentence 3 has read since 30 July 2026:

“The co-payment for aids intended for consumption amounts to 10 percent of the total amount to be borne by the health insurance fund, but at most 15 euros for the entire monthly requirement.”

This amendment was not yet included in the government draft. It was only inserted in the Bundestag – recognisable by the number “12a”. When inserting it, it was forgotten to include it in the article on entry into force. The consequence: on paper, the 15-euro cap has applied since 30 July 2026; what was intended was 1 January 2027, as for all other co-payments.

At the end of July, the Federal Ministry of Health described this as an editorial oversight and announced that it would be “corrected promptly in a further legislative procedure”. Until then, a transitional rule applies, which the German Pharmacists' Association and the trade press report consistently:

“Until 31 December 2026, the previous co-payment rule therefore remains in force unchanged.”

The GKV-Spitzenverband has promised to inform the health insurance funds accordingly by circular. In practice this means: anyone who receives incontinence or ostomy supplies pays at most 10 euros a month until the end of the year, from 1 January 2027 at most 15 euros. The correction of the legal text itself was still pending in September 2026.

What applies when

Benefit	until 31 Dec 2026	from 1 Jan 2027
Pads, pants, ostomy bags, catheters medical aids intended for consumption	10%, at most €10 a month legal text has said €15 since 30 Jul 2026; not applied under the transitional rule	10%, at most €15 a month
Durable medical aids e.g. supports, walking aids, suction devices	10%, €5 to €10 per aid	10%, €7.50 to €15 per aid
Medicines and dressings	10%, €5 to €10 per pack	10%, €7.50 to €15 per pack
Hospital	€10 per calendar day, at most 28 days a year	€15 per calendar day, at most 28 days a year
Therapies, home nursing care	10% + €10 per prescription nursing care: only the first 28 days a year	10% + €15 per prescription nursing care: only the first 28 days a year

Anyone who receives incontinence supplies monthly will pay up to 5 euros more a month from January 2027 than before. If a 15-euro cap already appears on a bill from the second half of 2026, it is worth looking at the transitional rule and calling the health insurance fund.

An honest addition on the burden limit

Section 62 SGB V is not changed. It remains the case that co-payments in a calendar year may amount to at most 2 percent of the annual gross income for living expenses, for chronically ill people in continuous treatment 1 percent. Once the limit is reached, the health insurance fund issues an exemption for the rest of the year.

Two things follow from this, and the second is rarely said:

• The upper limit for the year remains unchanged – it depends on income, not on the co-payment amounts.
• Anyone who reaches it anyway will reach it earlier in the year from 2027, because the individual amounts are higher. On balance, little changes for this group, but over the course of the year it does.

So it is still worth collecting receipts. Co-payments of all family members of a joint household are added together.

What the Bundestag changed in the draft

The government draft and the promulgated law differ in both directions.

Deleted: the draft provided for co-payments to be adjusted automatically every year in future – on 1 January in line with the average rate of change, announced in the Federal Gazette. These sentences are no longer in the law. It remains a one-off increase; a further one would need a new law.

Inserted: the increase of the cap for consumable medical aids to 15 euros – accidentally with immediate effect instead of on 1 January 2027.

What else becomes more expensive

For completeness, because it affects many: for dentures, the health insurance fund's fixed subsidy falls from 60 to 50 percent of standard care. This applies from 1 January 2027.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to pay more for my pads from 2027?

Yes, if your co-payment was previously at the monthly cap: from 1 January 2027, 10 percent applies, at most 15 euros for the entire monthly requirement, previously 10 euros. Until 31 December 2026 it remains 10 euros.

I have been charged 15 euros since August. Is that right?

Not according to the ministry's transitional rule. The previous rule is to apply until the end of the year. Contact your health insurance fund or your supplier and refer to the GKV-Spitzenverband's circular on the implementation of the Act.

Does this also apply to ostomy bags and catheters?

Yes. They are also medical aids intended for consumption and fall under the same cap.

Why has the law said 15 euros since July?

Because number 12a was inserted subsequently in the Bundestag and was not included in the list of provisions that only come into force on 1 January 2027. By its wording, the day after promulgation applies to it. The ministry calls this an editorial oversight and wants to correct it by law; until then the transitional rule applies.

I am exempt from co-payments. Does anything change?

Not the exemption itself. It continues to apply for the calendar year for which it was issued. From the age of 18, a co-payment is generally due; children and adolescents under 18 remain exempt.

What about the care package?

Consumable care aids under Section 40 SGB XI are a benefit of the long-term care insurance fund and completely free of co-payment. They are not affected by these changes. The difference is explained in our article on health insurance and long-term care insurance.

Will co-payments now rise every year?

No. The provision intended for this was deleted in the legislative procedure.

Do I have to do anything?

No. Your prescription, your supply and your entitlement remain unchanged. How the supply process works is explained in our article on medical aids on prescription.

Your next step

We bill the co-payment directly with your health insurance fund and show it on your invoice – we take an exemption into account automatically if we have it on file. Which product type suits you is explained in our article on pad, pants or brief.

Sources

• Act on the Stabilisation of Contribution Rates in Statutory Health Insurance (GKV Contribution Rate Stabilisation Act) of 24 July 2026, Federal Law Gazette Part I 2026 No. 228, issued 29 July 2026 – Article 1 numbers 12a and 23, Article 8 (in German)
• BStabG: higher co-payment came into force too early, APOTHEKE ADHOC, 31 July 2026 – statement by the Federal Ministry of Health on the editorial oversight and the transitional rule (in German)
• Medical aid co-payments: transitional solution due to error in the law, Pharmazeutische Zeitung, 19 August 2026 (in German)
• Section 33 SGB V – medical aids, Federal Ministry of Justice
• Section 39 SGB V – hospital treatment, Federal Ministry of Justice
• Section 62 SGB V – burden limit, Federal Ministry of Justice