The General Health Insurance Company (VZP) in the Czech Republic is set to receive a list of individuals awaiting pension processing from the social security administration. Consequently, VZP will no longer request health insurance contributions from them. This agreement was reached on Friday between representatives of the Ministry of Labor, the Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ), and the insurance companies.
Under the current system, the state covers health insurance for retirees. However, ČSSZ has been unable to process pension applications within the legal three-month period due to the overwhelming number of requests. Many individuals have already stopped working and, therefore, ceased making health insurance contributions. However, their pensions have not been officially confirmed. As a result, the insurance companies, unaware of their retirement status, continue to request donations. This process is automated.
To address this issue, people had to send proof to their insurance company that their pension was being processed. Once this proof was provided, the insurance company no longer requested contributions. If individuals paid the bid amount, the insurance company would reimburse them once their pension was processed.
Implementing this change is technically complex, and VZP has requested understanding during the transition. Suppose any individuals in this group of pension applicants receive a request for proof of health insurance payments or payment of minimum contributions. In that case, they are urged to contact VZP’s branch, where their situation will be addressed individually.
If ČSSZ ultimately denies an individual’s pension application, the insurance company will discuss the next steps with them. It is anticipated that this situation would only apply to a few cases.
ČSSZ is experiencing a significant influx of pension applicants, primarily due to many individuals seeking early retirement. Additionally, there is additional paperwork for a special “educational” pension that has been granted since January. As a result, the processing time for pensions now exceeds the legal three-month limit, with an average processing time of 99 days.
This week, the administration recorded 18,000 requests beyond the legal deadline, with 14,000 being for early retirement. František Boháček, the central director of ČSSZ, assured members of the social committee that the administration should resolve the situation by the end of June. Afterward, they should be able to process applications within the legal timeframes.