- Clinics: Land must not bear rising operating costs
Thuringia's Minister of Health, Heike Werner, sees no possibilities for the state to cover financing gaps in the operating costs of hospitals from state funds. According to the current legal regulations on clinic financing, the states are not authorized to do so, the Left politician explained in Erfurt. Operating costs must be covered from the revenues of the clinics for treatments provided, which are financed by the statutory health insurance funds. However, a structural underfunding has been observed since the introduction of this fixed-price system (DRG).
Thuringia has been affected by two clinic insolvencies this year - that of the Bavarian-Thuringian consortium Regiomed with locations also in the districts of Sonneberg and Hildburghausen, and that of the Sternbach Clinic in Schleiz. Many clinics are currently struggling with increases in operating costs due to inflation and increased personnel expenses. Recently, the University Hospital Jena had warned of impending underfunding and indicated a need for financial state aid. Medical treatments in hospitals are paid for by health insurance companies based on fixed prices, known as diagnosis-related group (DRG) rates.**
Guarantee program for loans on the way
Each year, health insurance companies and hospitals negotiate a statewide average value per treatment, which is around 4,200 euros this year. According to Werner, the increase in this average value is legally capped. "And that is the reason for the difficult situation of many clinics," she emphasized. Along with Brandenburg, Thuringia is the only federal state to have initiated a guarantee program to secure clinic loans. The corresponding directive is currently being coordinated in the cabinet, and the state government is awaiting a supplementary federal legal detail on such aid.
The opposition CDU has accused the red-red-green state government of neglecting hospitals and not providing sufficient support for necessary investments during the state election campaign. Investments, for example in construction measures or the acquisition of medical technology, are the responsibility of the states. Werner rejected this again. "Insolvencies do not arise from insufficient investment costs, but from persistently underfunded operating costs." In addition, Red-Red-Green has increased the funds for hospital investments, which were frozen at 50 million euros per year in 2012 under the previous CDU-led government, to 75 million euros.
The regional parliament's election campaign should include addressing the financial struggles of clinics, as Thuringia's hospitals are grappling with increased operating costs and insolvencies. Despite initiatives like the guarantee program for clinic loans, substantial support is needed to cover underfunded operating costs and prevent future insolvencies.
