The Annual Adjustment Index (AAI) for long-term health insurance recorded a 6.24% increase for 2024, as published for the first time by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), as part of the implementation of Law 5170/2025.
This is a new responsibility for ELSTAT, which compiles the index based on data collected from insurance companies, such as the amounts of claims, the average cost per claim, the frequency of claims, exposure to insurance risk, and other factors specified in the relevant legislation. The EDA measures the average annual change in the net cost of coverage for long-term and annually renewable health insurance contracts.
Two indices—with and without age
Since premium adjustments are also linked to changes in the age of the insured, ELSTAT publishes two versions of the index. The index that includes the effect of age rose by 6.24%, while the index that excludes the effect of age rose by 1.25%.
The difference between the two reflects the impact of the aging insured population on the cost of benefits. The 6.24% figure incorporates this effect, as older age groups generally entail higher coverage costs.
In contrast, the 1.25% reflects the change in cost independent of age—that is, factors such as rising healthcare costs or the frequency of hospitalizations.
A different picture emerges for the two categories of policies
For long-term health insurance policies, the index rose by 7.23% when age was factored in and by 1.76% when it was not. For annually renewable policies, the corresponding changes were 5.36% and 0.79%.
In terms of figures, for long-term insurance, the total amount of claims reached 229 million euros in 2024, up from 227.7 million euros in 2023, while the average cost per claim rose to 4,938 euros, from 4,563 euros.
For annual policies, total claims rose to 254.3 million euros, up from 232.4 million euros in 2023. At the same time, exposure to insurance risk—that is, the number of policyholders—rose to approximately 708,000 from 664,000 a year earlier. At the same time, the average cost per claim fell marginally to €3,578 from €3,604 in 2023.
It should be noted that the EDA was established by Law 5170/2025 to provide a uniform, objective index for adjusting premiums in long-term health insurance plans. ELSTAT will now publish the index on an annual basis, approximately 12 months after the end of each reference year.
