Lauterbach highlights the significant ineffectiveness of the healthcare system.
Next year, there's a projected major surge in health insurance premiums. Health Minister Lauterbach is pushing for immediate changes to address this issue. He bluntly criticized our current healthcare system during a parliamentary session. He labeled it as the most expensive in Europe, yet disappointingly inefficient when it comes to delivering quality care. He emphasized that necessary reforms have been neglected for several decades.
Lauterbach also encouraged the Hospital Reform of the traffic light coalition, which is up for a vote in the Bundestag this Thursday. The reform intends to revamp the way hospitals are financed in Germany. "This is the biggest hospital reform in two decades," he stated.
Statistics reveal that one-third of hospital beds are vacant, while seven billion euros are being excessively spent: "Despite this, many hospitals are on the brink of bankruptcy. The Hospital Reform is crucial right now," Lauterbach explained. He believes that structural changes and enhanced prevention are the keys to halting the persistent increase in contributions. "Absent these reforms, the contribution rate will continue to soar," he warned.
The so-called Schätzerkreis - a group of experts from health insurance companies, the Federal Office for Social Security, and the Health Ministry - had earlier estimated that the additional contribution of the statutory health insurance funds would need to escalate by 0.8 percentage points next year, peaking at an average of 2.5% of the insured income. However, the actual increase in the contribution rate will be determined individually by each health insurance company.
The Hospital Reform, as proposed by Lauterbach, aims to be voted in the Bundestag this Thursday, aiming to revamp hospital financing in Germany. Despite one-third of hospital beds being vacant and excessive spending of seven billion euros, many hospitals are still on the brink of bankruptcy, highlighting the need for this reform in hospitals.
