Christos Pantazis, the health policy spokesperson for the SPD parliamentary group, has voiced his support for the initiative proposed by CDU General Secretary Carsten Linnemann. The proposal centers on restructuring the health insurance landscape and significantly reducing the number of statutory health funds. Pantazis told the newspaper “Bild” that he fully supports the plan, asserting that the overall system of insurance funds must be streamlined.
While backing the consolidation, Pantazis also advocated for further measures, noting that current savings contributions from the funds are below average. He suggested that to ensure adequate stability, health insurance funds should maintain a minimum of 1.5 million insured members.
Echoing Linnemann’s core request, Pantazis stated that the current number of health funds, which stands at 93, should be reduced to between ten and twenty. According to Pantazis, having a limited number of large funds would allow for the more effective implementation of fundamental reforms within the healthcare system.