"Can I claim it back from my health insurer?" I get this question quite often, usually from a customer who spends regularly on CBD and wonders whether part of it could be covered. The short answer won't please everyone.
The short answer: no, not through basic insurance
Compulsory health insurance (LAMal/KVG) only reimburses medicines on the list of pharmaceutical specialities, an official list of medicines approved by Swissmedic. A CBD oil bought in a shop, even with a doctor's note or verbal recommendation, isn't on it. It's classed as a wellbeing product, not a medicine, so there's no possible reimbursement through basic insurance, however you present the claim.
The exception that isn't really one for you
There are officially approved cannabinoid-based medicines, such as Epidiolex, prescribed in very specific cases of severe epilepsy resistant to standard treatments. These products follow a completely different route: precise medical diagnosis, hospital prescription, full medicine status. It has nothing to do with the CBD oil we sell in the shop for everyday wellbeing, and the vast majority of my customers will never be concerned by this route.
What about "alternative medicine" supplementary insurance?
This is where it gets a little more interesting, but still indirect. Several insurers such as CSS, Helsana, Swica, Sanitas or Assura offer "alternative medicine" supplementary policies that reimburse 70 to 80% of sessions with an EMR- or ASCA-recognised therapist, with caps from 1,500 to 5,000 francs a year. If a certified naturopath includes CBD as part of a genuine therapeutic follow-up billed as a consultation, part of it may go through this route. But it's not buying a bottle over the counter that's reimbursed – it's the professional consultation.
A customer called his health insurer hoping for partial reimbursement of his usual CBD oil. Clear, quick answer: refused, product not recognised as a medicine. He then discovered his supplementary policy covered sessions with an ASCA naturopath, and started a follow-up that includes CBD within a broader approach – partly covered this time.
What I recommend in practice
Don't assume reimbursement is possible just because you have good supplementary cover. Call your insurer directly with precise questions about what's covered, keep your receipts just in case, and if you really want cover, turn to an EMR- or ASCA-certified therapist rather than buying directly in a shop.
My straight advice
Budget for your CBD as a wellbeing product, not a reimbursable health expense. If partial cover exists for your situation, it will almost always go through a recognised professional and a genuine therapeutic process – not a simple till receipt.
