Prevention Guide for CEOs

Prevention Guide for CEOs: What §20b SGB V Actually Means — and What ROI WHP Delivers

Note: this refers to German law. The GKV Prevention Guide sets which WHP measures statutory health insurers can fund under § 20b SGB V — as a sum for a project, not an amount per head, and with no entitlement. For CEOs: WHP is legally voluntary but a business necessity — no law forces you, competition does. The legal duties are occupational safety (§ 618 BGB, § 5 ArbSchG) and BEM (§ 167 SGB IX). ROI: 1:2.7 (according to the iga.Report, on average, with structured implementation).

WHP costs and ROI: the key figures for the management decision

Item	Cost / Benefit	Source
Health insurer funding (§ 20b)	a sum per project, e.g. a health day for a few thousand euros or an annual budget of €5,000 — no amount per employee, no entitlement	§ 20b SGB V
Tax-free allowance § 3 No. 34 EStG	up to €600/employee/year tax-free for employer health benefits — a ceiling, not a target; only your tax advisor can confirm it	§ 3 No. 34 EStG
Insurer funding and tax allowance	do not add them up: the insurer funds projects; the allowance caps the tax-free employer benefit per person	§ 20b SGB V + § 3 No. 34 EStG
Cost per sick day	about €150 in lost labour costs or about €260 in lost gross value added per day of incapacity for work for the economy as a whole (€134 bn and €227 bn across 881.5 million sick days; German figures); for your own company, a model calculation puts it at around €300 per sick day	BAuA, Economic costs of incapacity for work 2024; Personalwirtschaft 2024
WHP effect on absenteeism	Sick leave can fall by around a quarter with well-implemented programs	iga.Report 28 (2015)
ROI on WHP investment (average)	1:2.7 — according to the iga.Report, each euro invested returns €2.70 on average, with structured implementation; 85% of the ROI values analysed are above 1	iga.Report 40 (2019)

What Does the GKV Prevention Guide Mean for the CEO's Decision?

For the CEO, the GKV Prevention Guide comes down to three core decisions: first, grant the mandate (WHP is anchored in the company's health governance). Second, approve the budget (its size follows your goals and measures; a sample calculation follows below). Third, set up a health working group and appoint a steering committee. The guide itself — a 150-page rulebook — doesn't need to be read by the CEO. That's the job of HR and WHP officers.

What CEOs need to understand: the GKV Prevention Guide is the basis on which statutory health insurers fund WHP projects in companies. Funding comes as a sum for a project — a measure, a health day for a few thousand euros, or an annual budget (e.g. €5,000) — not as an amount per head. There is no entitlement: whether and how much an insurer funds also depends on how many of your employees it covers. Companies that plan and document in line with the guide come to the insurer with data instead of a request — a conversation on equal terms.

Legal Duty or Competitive Advantage: What Do § 618 BGB and § 5 ArbSchG Require — and Where Does WHP Fit?

§ 618 BGB obligates the employer to set up and maintain “rooms, facilities, or equipment that it must provide for the performance of services […] so that the obligated party is protected against danger to life and health to the extent the nature of the service permits.” Mental health has been explicitly included since 2013 (§ 5 ArbSchG).

§ 130 OWiG (supervisory duty) concerns these mandatory pillars: if management fails to organize and supervise occupational safety and this leads to violations subject to fines — for example of the risk assessment under § 5 ArbSchG — CEOs can be held personally liable. This does not apply to WHP: workplace health promotion under § 20b SGB V is legally voluntary. It does not protect against liability — it lowers sickness absence, retains skilled staff and strengthens cohesion.

Practical implication: in a liability case or an illness-related dismissal, what counts are the mandatory pillars — a documented risk assessment (§§ 5, 6 ArbSchG) and a properly offered BEM (§ 167 SGB IX). WHP works elsewhere: as a competitive advantage that you measure with your own key figures.

What WHP Budget Is Realistic for 50, 100 or 250 Employees?

A calculation frame, not a study figure: if you plan with €300–600 gross investment per employee per year, you arrive at the amounts below. Plan this budget as your own investment: statutory health insurers can fund individual projects from it, with a sum the insurer sets per project — there is no fixed rate per employee. Separately, employer health benefits of up to €600 per employee per year can be tax-free (§ 3 No. 34 EStG, German law). That is a ceiling, not a subsidy: the benefit stays free of wage tax for employees, while the company still bears the cost of the measure. Only your tax advisor can confirm the tax exemption.

50 employees: gross budget €15,000–30,000/year → insurer funding possible for individual projects, such as a health day for a few thousand euros
100 employees: gross budget €30,000–60,000/year → insurers fund projects, not heads: e.g. an annual budget of €5,000, never a fixed sum per employee
250 employees: gross budget €75,000–150,000/year → the insurer sets the amount per project; there is no entitlement
Additionally: employer health benefits of up to €600 per employee per year can be tax-free (§ 3 No. 34 EStG) — a ceiling, not a target; only your tax advisor can confirm it
In practice: companies that document needs, measures and impact come to the insurer with data instead of a request — a conversation on equal terms, not a guarantee of funding

Related measures & topics

Key takeaways

Insurers fund WHP projects under § 20b SGB V with a project sum, not per head and with no entitlement — separately, health benefits of up to €600/employee/year can be tax-free (§ 3 No. 34 EStG; only your tax advisor can confirm it).
ROI 1:2.7 (according to the iga.Report, on average, with structured implementation; 85% of the ROI values analysed are above 1, iga.Report 40) — the proof for your company comes from your own measurement.
Legal duties are occupational safety (§ 618 BGB, § 5 ArbSchG, supervision under § 130 OWiG) and BEM — WHP is legally voluntary but a business necessity.
CEOs don't need to read the guide — mandate + budget + steering committee are enough as a CEO contribution.
Whether WHP works depends on the quality of implementation — according to iga.Report 28, well-implemented programs can reduce sick leave by around a quarter.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to read the Prevention Guide as CEO?+

No. The GKV Prevention Guide is an operational HR/WHP document. As CEO, you need to provide the mandate and the budget — operational implementation and applications are the responsibility of HR or the WHP officer. If you don't have one: EasyWHP guides HR through the steps digitally.

What happens if I don't offer WHP?+

Legally: there are no fines for lacking WHP. (The mandatory pillars are different: for the GBPsych, a fine of up to €30,000 under Sec. 25 ArbSchG applies if an order of the labor inspectorate is not complied with; without BEM, the employer bears an extended burden of explanation and proof in a dismissal on grounds of illness.) Economically: you forgo the chance to have WHP projects funded by a statutory health insurer (a project sum, no entitlement). Separately, the § 3 No. 34 EStG allowance goes unused, under which employer health benefits of up to €600 per employee per year can be tax-free — only your tax advisor can confirm that. Reputationally: in the survey for the TK Health Report 2025, 93.2% of employees say it matters to them that their employer is committed to a healthy workplace — lacking WHP can become a recruiting disadvantage.

How much budget should I plan for WHP?+

There is no fixed figure — the budget follows your goals and measures; the sample calculation above works with €300–600 per employee per year (gross budget). Plan so that the program works without funding too: insurers can support individual projects with a project sum, but that is not guaranteed. Whether the budget works is shown by your own measurement — for example your sickness rate compared with the national average.

What's the difference between health promotion under § 20b and WHP as a whole?+

Workplace health promotion under § 20b SGB V (German law) is one of three WHP pillars: behavioral and structural prevention measures that statutory health insurers can fund as projects. WHP as a whole is the overarching system of three pillars: health promotion + BEM (§ 167 SGB IX) + occupational safety (§ 5 ArbSchG). EasyWHP brings all three pillars together in one tool — with a focus on health promotion, plus BEM and the psychosocial risk assessment.

WHP per GKV Guide — Little Effort for the CEO

EasyWHP structures the WHP program along the GKV guide and documents it so you can approach your health insurer with data.

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Sources

Last updated: 2026-06-27. Not legal or tax advice — have your specific case reviewed by a professional.

Apply for GKV Funding for WHPWhat does health insurance pay for workplace health promotion (WHP) — and which measures actually qualify for §20b funding?Management Liability in WHPWhat WHP duties does company management have — and what happens if they're violated?WHP Costs for SMEsWhat does a complete workplace health promotion (WHP) program cost at a small or medium-sized German company?HR Prevention GuideHR Manager's Guide to Prevention: Which Measures Health Insurers Fund — and Why § 20 and § 20b SGB V Work Differently