“Bounce the ball off our feet…”
Lauterbach calls on critics of hospital reform – Bavaria threatens to sue
April 17, 2024, 8:00 p.m
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What should the future of clinics in Germany look like? There has been a fierce struggle for months – over money and more requirements for treatment quality. Health Minister Lauterbach asks everyone involved: There is no alternative to the reform. Meanwhile, the countries are already reporting a lot of criticism.
Despite ongoing differences with the federal states, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach is committed to taking the next quick steps towards the planned hospital reform. The SPD politician said after federal-state consultations in Berlin that one could go along with some of the requested points, such as more de-bureaucratization. On the other hand, general quality standards for the federal government are not negotiable. The necessity of the reform was not questioned. Everyone knows that it is a “historic opportunity” to rebuild the system in the way it is needed. Objections continued to be raised from the states.
Lauterbach emphasized: “There is no other reform.” You are doomed to success. He doesn’t believe that the reform will fail, it is too significant for that. “If the ball were to drop from our feet, not only would we no longer be able to avert disorderly hospital deaths in the next few years, but we would also have to struggle with quality deficits that are very difficult to convey to citizens.”
The states and associations have until April 30 to comment on a draft bill that has now been presented. The states had promised a joint statement, explained Lauterbach. The cabinet will then deal with it on May 8th, and the first reading in the Bundestag is expected before the summer. The minister reiterated that the law should be designed in such a way that it does not require approval in the Bundesrat – even if the states wanted this.
Countries report criticism – Bavaria threatens to sue
The reform plans aim to change the remuneration with flat rates for treatment cases in order to relieve clinics from financial pressure to deal with an increasing number of cases. In the future, they should receive 60 percent of the remuneration just for holding offers. The basis for financing by the health insurance companies should be more precisely defined service groups with uniform quality standards.
The chairwoman of the state health ministers, Kerstin von der Decken from Schleswig-Holstein, called for the federal government to move. The states agreed that extensive corrections to the draft were necessary in order to make a reform that was supported by everyone a success. “This can only be achieved together with the states responsible for hospital planning,” said the CDU politician. Hamburg Senator Melanie Schlotzhauer from the SPD said that the current draft was not yet designed in such a way that it would pass the practical test. What is needed, among other things, is a detailed analysis of the impacts.
The Bavarian CSU department head Judith Gerlach criticized that far too many hospitals were having to significantly reduce their range of services. “That’s irresponsible.” If Lauterbach does not correct his plan, Bavaria will take legal action against it in the Federal Constitutional Court. A new report commissioned by Bavaria, Schleswig-Holstein, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg found, among other things, that passing a law without the consent of the Federal Council carries “the risk of formal unconstitutionality”.
Lauterbach said that the reform would lead to clinic closures, and that was also intentional. However, these are targeted and planned closures in the spirit of the reform and not because the houses needed cannot make ends meet. The health policy spokesmen of the traffic light coalition, Heike Baehrens, Janosch Dahmen and Andrew Ullmann, expressed confidence that there would be rapid discussions on the reform in the Bundestag.
Statutory health insurance companies warned against compromising standards for treatment quality and greater specialization. Before the federal-state round, Barmer boss Christoph Straub warned of the risk that a pure financial reform would remain from the much announced reform. “This threatens to bring enormous costs to the system and those with statutory health insurance, without the urgently needed quality and structural changes actually being tackled.” The head of the Techniker Krankenkasse, Jens Baas, said the reform was a historic opportunity to bring outdated structures into shape.