A few days before the government commission on health insurance is set to hand over its reform proposals, Rainer Dulger-the president of the German employers’ federation-warned that the German health system is headed toward a financial crisis and urged concrete changes.
In an interview with “Welt am Sonntag” Dulger said that Germany already enjoys the most expensive health care in Europe, “but without the corresponding quality”. He called for an expenditure moratorium to immediately halt further increases in costs for both employees and employers. He also stressed that hospital overcapacity must be reduced and real efficiency incentives introduced, and that the annual administrative costs of the social insurance system, which exceed €26 billion, are too high.
Dulger singled out the treatment of recipients of the basic income (Bürgergeld) as an urgent priority. The federal government currently pays only €140 per person per month to health insurers on behalf of these citizens, creating an annual shortfall of roughly €10 billion that would have to be made up by contribution payers. “Such non‑insurance benefits must be financed from the tax budget, not through social contributions” he told the newspaper. He also advocated ending the tax‑free co‑insurance of spouses, a measure that could relieve about €3 billion.
The Health Finance Commission, tasked with stabilising the contribution rates of statutory health insurance, was appointed by Federal Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU). The commission will deliver its report to the federal government on Monday, containing proposals aimed at securing the long‑term financing of Germany’s health system.