Lauterbach has no sympathy for doctors' demands
Many doctors' surgeries are closed in the week between Christmas and New Year - not because the doctors are on vacation, but because they are on strike, among other things for more money. Health Minister Lauterbach considers this completely inappropriate.
Health Minister Karl Lauterbach shows no understanding for calls for more money from doctors in private practice. He considers the demands "not justified", he said in the ZDF "heute journal update". "With the exception of Switzerland, nowhere else in Europe do doctors' practices earn as much as in Germany. I don't see any scope for fee increases," said the SPD politician.
He did not understand why there were strikes, said Lauterbach, referring to the ongoing protests by various doctors' associations. There is a "huge wave of illness" in the population. "The doctors' demands for more money are also well known. The strike won't bring anything forward at all."
Doctors' associations have called for GP and specialist surgeries across Germany to remain closed between the years. The action, which is planned until Friday, is part of the "Praxis in Not" campaign, which is supported by more than 20 associations. It is unclear how many practices will take part in the campaign due to the decentralized organization. According to a spokeswoman, the Virchowbund der niedergelassenen Ärztinnen und Ärzte expects several tens of thousands of practices to be closed nationwide.
Lauterbach wants to meet with GPs in January for a crisis summit to discuss the lamented overload and bureaucracy in practices. "Practices need better working conditions and less bureaucracy. The money also needs to be distributed more fairly," he said on ZDF television. "But simply pouring more money into a system as in the past - which doesn't really work well - we have simply practiced this solution too often. That will not be the focus."
Health insurance companies against "funding with a watering can"
The statutory health insurance funds have a similar opinion. "The principle of funding with a watering can must come to an end. There is enough money in the system," said Doris Pfeifer, head of the board of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds, to Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland. The gross net income of doctors in private practice has risen on average across Germany in recent years.
"It must also be made clear: What doctors or pharmacists want to get more, the supermarket cashier and the truck driver have to finance with their health insurance contributions," said Pfeiffer. They also suffered from the increased prices. Pfeiffer also opposed further financial aid for clinics. "It is not acceptable for contributors to pump additional money into a hospital system in which 30 to 40 percent of beds are permanently empty," she said. It makes no sense to continue to support clinics that will ultimately no longer be needed to provide good patient care.
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Lauterbach criticizes the strikes by doctors' associations during the holiday season, stating that the actions are not justified given the high earnings of doctors in private practice in Germany compared to other European countries.
Health insurance companies, such as those represented by Doris Pfeifer, the head of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds, disagree with the proposal of funding the health system with a "watering can," as they believe there is already enough money in the system and further increases in funding should not come at the expense of other sectors or contributors.
In response to Lauterbach's call for a crisis summit with GPs to discuss the overload and bureaucracy in practices, statutory health insurance funds, like those led by Pfeifer, argue that funding should be directed towards improving working conditions and reducing bureaucracy in practices, rather than simply increasing fees.
Source: www.ntv.de
