Due to tariff increases in nursing care and inflation, the out‑of‑pocket costs for a nursing‑home place have risen noticeably. The latest figures from the AOK Federal Association, reported by the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” newspapers, show that the amount that care recipients must pay in the first year of residency climbed by €112 on average in Germany, reaching €3,204 per month between June and the end of December 2025.
Large differences persist between the states. North Rhine‑Westphalia has the highest personal contribution at €3,528, while Saxony‑Anhalt has the lowest at €2,661. Including payments from nursing insurance, the nationwide average cost of a nursing‑home spot is now €5,033, up from €4,715 at the end of 2024.
AOK chief Carola Reimann has urged Federal Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) to honor her commitment and to address the rising out‑of‑pocket burden through the upcoming nursing‑care reform. “In the context of the planned reform we must make several adjustments to effectively limit the personal contribution of residents in fully residential facilities” Reimann said to RND.
Reimann also highlighted a central issue: residents are required to make up for the states’ failures to finance investment costs. “If the states fulfilled their obligations for building and maintaining homes, a significant reduction in personal contributions could be achieved” she added. She called for training costs to be removed from the personal share, a change that would relieve care recipients of about €1 billion.