According to reports, the factions of the traffic light coalition have apparently reached an agreement to implement the planned budget reallocation of family doctors, as proposed by German Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD). The news portal Politico cites government and faction sources, stating that the agreement was reached during a meeting of parliamentary reporters on Friday evening. The reallocation would eliminate the fee cap for family doctors, resulting in annual additional costs in the tens of millions for the statutory health insurance.
Additionally, the agreement, according to the report, would also see the introduction of the chronic patient allowance. The coalition government had approved the regulations in May, along with a range of other measures, as part of the Healthcare Strengthening Act (GVSG), which, however, was not adopted in time before the end of the coalition in the Bundestag. Corresponding amendment proposals to the GVSG are reportedly in the works. The decision in the Bundestag is expected to take place in late January or mid-February, during one of the last two sittings before the federal election.