Does Swiss health insurance pay for a rollator and other aids?

What basic health insurance pays

Basic health insurance pays for aids and appliances prescribed by a doctor that serve examination or treatment (Art. 25 para. 2 let. b of the Federal Health Insurance Act, KVG). Which ones, and up to what amount, is set out exhaustively in the Aids and Appliances List, the MiGeL (Art. 52 para. 1 let. a no. 3 KVG, Art. 20a of the Health Care Benefits Ordinance, KLV). Basic health insurance does not pay for anything that is not on the list. This page is based on the edition of 01.07.2026.

In chapter 10, the MiGeL describes walking aids as aids that make walking possible after illness or an accident, or that take the weight off a leg during the healing and recovery phase. For walking aids in everyday life outside this phase, it expressly refers to invalidity insurance. The list is correspondingly short:

The maximum reimbursement amount is the most the insurer pays. If the product costs more, you pay the difference yourself (Art. 24 para. 3 KLV). The normal co-payment applies to the reimbursed part: first the deductible, then a 10 % retention fee (Art. 64 para. 2 KVG). The glossary entry aids and appliances explains the list in more detail.

The order of priority is important. If old-age, invalidity, accident or military insurance is responsible for an aid or appliance, that insurance settles the claim. Basic health insurance then provides no additional benefits and does not cover any share of the costs that, for example, old-age insurance does not reimburse (MiGeL, explanatory notes no. 2.3).

What supplementary insurance pays

For a rollator or other aids and appliances outside the MiGeL, a voluntary supplementary outpatient insurance comes into question. It is governed by the Insurance Contract Act (ICA); the law does not prescribe any contribution towards aids and appliances. Possible provisions in the general terms and conditions:

• a percentage or a fixed amount towards aids and appliances that are not in the MiGeL,
• a contribution towards rental instead of purchase,
• a maximum amount per year or per aid,
• a doctor’s prescription as a requirement,
• an exclusion if a social insurance such as invalidity insurance would be responsible.

Whether your contract includes a rollator is only set out in the general terms and conditions. We are building a comparison of supplementary products under Supplementary insurance. What counts are the general terms and conditions and the information from your insurer.

Conditions

Who pays for a rollator or other aid depends on why and for how long you need it and how old you are.

• Basic health insurance, MiGeL only: The aid must be in the MiGeL, prescribed by a doctor and come from an approved supplier, such as a pharmacy or a medical supply shop (Art. 20 KLV). For rollators, this condition is never met.
• Invalidity insurance: Invalidity insurance (IV) provides aids and appliances that you need because of a disability in order to get around, stay in contact with your surroundings or look after yourself (Art. 21 para. 2 of the Federal Act on Invalidity Insurance, IVG; Art. 2 HVI). Its list includes rollators and walking frames (Annex no. 12.02), wheelchairs (no. 9), toilet-shower units, patient lifts and electric beds (no. 14.01 to 14.03), all on loan. They are provided in a simple and appropriate design (Art. 21 para. 3 IVG). You register with the IV office of your canton.
• End of the IV entitlement: The entitlement to integration measures from invalidity insurance ends when you draw your full old-age pension early, at the latest at the end of the month in which you reach the reference age (Art. 10 para. 3 IVG). You keep aids and appliances you received from invalidity insurance before then to the same extent, as long as the conditions are met (Art. 4 HVA).
• Old-age insurance (AHV): From retirement age, old-age insurance only provides the aids and appliances on its own exhaustive list (Art. 2 para. 1 HVA). It does not include a rollator. Towards a wheelchair without a motor that is likely to be needed permanently, it pays CHF 900, at most every five years (HVA Annex no. 9.51).
• Accident insurance: If you need the aid because of an accident, you are entitled to aids and appliances that compensate for physical damage or loss of function (Art. 11 of the Accident Insurance Act, UVG). Accident insurance then settles the claim, not the health insurer.
• Supplementary benefits: If you receive annual supplementary benefits, the canton reimburses proven costs for aids and appliances (Art. 14 para. 1 let. f of the Federal Act on Supplementary Benefits, ELG). The canton decides which costs (Art. 14 para. 2 ELG).

Sample calculation

Example with fictitious people and assumed prices. Hanna, 79, receives an old-age pension and needs a rollator for everyday life after a long illness. We assume a price of CHF 300. Her daughter Eva, 52, has been prescribed crutches with an anatomical grip after a knee operation, because she has to keep the weight off her leg for six weeks; the medical supply shop charges an assumed CHF 75. Eva has already used up her deductible for the year. The maximum reimbursement amounts come from the MiGeL as of 01.07.2026.

How to proceed

1. Clarify the cause: Illness, accident or permanent disability? This determines which insurance is responsible.
2. Get a prescription: Have a doctor prescribe the aid. This is compulsory for MiGeL products and usually helpful for invalidity insurance, accident insurance and supplementary insurance.
3. For a permanent need, involve invalidity insurance: Before retirement age, register with the IV office before you buy. Invalidity insurance lends rollators.
4. Consider renting instead of buying: For a short period, it is worth asking the supplier about rental, even if you pay yourself.
5. Send the invoice to the right place: Basic health insurance only for MiGeL products, otherwise the supplementary benefits office or supplementary insurance.

Common mistakes

• Submitting the rollator to basic health insurance. It is not in the MiGeL; the insurer has to refuse it.
• Buying first, then asking invalidity insurance. Invalidity insurance lends rollators. Clarify your entitlement before buying.
• Expecting the health insurer to cover the remaining costs. If old-age or invalidity insurance pays part, basic health insurance does not cover the rest.
• Forgetting the difference above the maximum amount. You always pay this yourself, and it does not count towards the deductible.

Other help in everyday life is described in the guides Household help and Occupational therapy, and the hearing aid as another aid provided by old-age and invalidity insurance in the guide Hearing aid. You will find all benefits in the overview What does health insurance cover?; you can compare premiums in the premium calculator and key figures in the health insurer profiles.