Does Swiss health insurance pay for a breast pump?

What basic health insurance pays

In basic health insurance, a breast pump is one of the “aids and appliances”: an item you receive on a medical referral and use yourself at home (Art. 25 para. 2 let. b of the Federal Health Insurance Act, KVG; Art. 20 para. 1 of the Health Care Benefits Ordinance, KLV). What the insurer pays for it is set by the FOPH’s Aids and Appliances List, MiGeL for short. Breast pumps are listed under item 01.01. This page is based on the edition of 01.07.2026.

The insurer only pays if at least one of these medical reasons applies, which the MiGeL lists exhaustively:

• for the child: premature birth, weak sucking, malformations or organic diseases;
• for the breastfeeding mother: sore nipples, inflammation, milk stasis, temporary drug treatment, increased or reduced milk production;
• for a medically necessary separation of mother and child.

Source: MiGeL, edition of 01.07.2026, self-use column. For premature babies, up to twice the amount can be reimbursed for the accessory set. A new accessory set is paid for again for each child and for a medical indication, such as a change in nipple size.

The amounts are upper limits. The insurer pays the actual price, but at most the amount on the list. If the pharmacy or medical supply shop charges more, you bear the difference yourself (Art. 24 para. 3 KLV). Expensive, reusable devices are generally rented (Art. 24 para. 4 KLV); the MiGeL nevertheless recommends buying if longer use is expected.

No deductible around the birth

Benefits under Art. 25 KVG provided from the 13th week of pregnancy, during the birth and up to eight weeks afterwards are exempt from the deductible and retention fee (Art. 64 para. 7 let. b KVG). The period ends at midnight on the 56th day after the birth (Art. 105 para. 3 of the Health Insurance Ordinance, KVV). A pump that is prescribed and supplied to the mother during this period therefore only costs her the part above the maximum amount. The article Pregnant: which costs health insurance covers explains more about the specific benefits for maternity.

What supplementary insurance pays

Breastfeeding alone is not a reason for basic health insurance to pay for a pump. If you want to express milk without a medical indication, for example when returning to work, you pay for the pump yourself, unless voluntary supplementary insurance contributes. Supplementary insurance is governed by the Insurance Contract Act (ICA); the law does not require any benefit for breast pumps. Each insurer sets out in its general terms and conditions:

• whether it recognises breast pumps at all, as aids or as a maternity benefit,
• whether it contributes to renting, buying or both, and up to what amount,
• whether a medical prescription is required,
• whether a waiting period applies before maternity benefits are paid.

Supplementary insurance may not cover the deductible and retention fee of basic health insurance (Art. 64 para. 8 KVG). It only pays towards the part that basic health insurance does not reimburse at all, for example the amount above the MiGeL maximum or a pump without an indication. We are building a comparison of supplementary products under Supplementary insurance. What counts is always the general terms and conditions and the information from your insurer.

Conditions

• Medical prescription: A physician must prescribe the pump (Art. 20 para. 1 KLV). Have the medical reason from the MiGeL noted on the prescription so that the insurer can check the indication.
• Approved supplier: You collect the pump from an approved supplier, usually a pharmacy or a medical supply shop. Basic health insurance does not pay for a purchase from an online shop that is not approved as a supplier.
• Rental period: Rental is paid for at most 8 weeks. An extension of a further 8 weeks requires a medical justification.
• Double pump: Buying a double pump is reimbursed only for premature babies.
• Deductible and retention fee: Outside the maternity period, the reimbursed amount counts towards the deductible; after that, a 10 % retention fee applies, up to a maximum of CHF 700 per year for adults (Art. 103 KVV). For children, there is no standard deductible and a retention fee of at most CHF 350 (Art. 64 para. 4 KVG, Art. 103 para. 2 KVV).
• Breastfeeding advice is regulated separately: Basic health insurance pays for three sessions of breastfeeding advice with a midwife or a specially trained nurse as a maternity benefit, without co-payment and without a medical indication (Art. 29 para. 2 let. c KVG, Art. 15 KLV).

Sample calculation

Example with fictitious people and assumed supplier prices. Lea, 33, has milk stasis ten weeks after the birth. The physician prescribes an electric pump for rental for 4 weeks (28 days). The pharmacy charges an assumed CHF 3.00 per day and CHF 30.00 for the accessory set. Lea has already used up her deductible this year. The maximum amounts come from the MiGeL of 01.07.2026, the co-payment from Art. 64 KVG.

Whether a higher deductible is worth it for you depends on your expected costs over the whole year. The deductible calculator does the calculation with the break-even point, and you can compare premiums in the premium calculator.

How to proceed

1. Clarify the reason: Discuss breastfeeding problems with your midwife, at a breastfeeding advice session or with your physician. That is where it becomes clear whether one of the medical reasons applies.
2. Get a prescription: Have the pump prescribed with the indication, rental or purchase, and duration.
3. Ask about the price in advance: Ask the pharmacy whether its daily rental price and the accessory set are above the MiGeL amounts.
4. Submit the invoice: If the pharmacy does not bill the insurer directly, you submit the invoice and the prescription yourself. The insurer first checks basic health insurance, then any supplementary insurance.
5. Note when the rental ends: Cost coverage ends after 8 weeks. If you need the pump for longer, get the medical justification for the extension beforehand.

Common mistakes

• Buying a pump without a prescription. Without a medical referral, the pump is not a compulsory benefit, even if a medical reason arises later.
• Assuming every breastfeeding mother is entitled. Basic health insurance only pays for the indications in the MiGeL.
• Forgetting the accessory set. It is not included when renting; the insurer pays for it up to CHF 27.85.
• Renting for too long. Basic health insurance pays no rental beyond 16 weeks. For long-term use, buying is cheaper.
• Overestimating the 8-week exemption. The date of treatment is decisive for the co-payment (Art. 103 para. 3 KVV). If a rental runs beyond the 56th day after the birth, ask your insurer how it bills the rental days after that.

You register the baby with an insurer within three months of the birth; how this works is explained under Insuring your baby. Key figures and contact options for insurers are in the health insurer profiles, and further benefits from glasses to physiotherapy in the overview What does health insurance cover?.