[krrrh]

In Germany private insurance is the only option for self-employed. It is precisely a mandated requirement for basic coverage. The two "public options" are not available to freelancers, and anyway the public options are more akin to competing non-profit insurance companies than state-administered health care like in France, the U.K., or Canada.

Buying insurance is also a pain because unlike in the US under ACA, German insurance companies are able to charge higher premiums for pre-existing conditions up to a mandated Basispreis (approximately 3x a healthy person's rate - somewhere north of 600€ per month). Pre-existing conditions can include a hospital visit with a null diagnosis.

There's a lot more to it, but I get frustrated when people talk about European-style health care as if it means something concrete, when there are such a wide range of policies across Europe.