Boris Augurzky, a health economist at the RWI Leibniz Institute, has called for a rise in hospital co‑payments. Since 2004 patients have paid €10 per day after admission. Augurzky argued that the state should increase this amount to €15 to keep pace with inflation, noting that the adjustment could add several hundred million euros to public spending. He points out that other service prices, such as at hairdressers, have also risen.
He insists that all parties, not just doctors and hospitals, must share the burden. “Older patients visit doctors and hospitals more frequently, so the higher co‑payments would hit them the most-this is generation‑fair” Augurzky said. “Otherwise only the contributors to the health system would shoulder the costs”. He advocates moving beyond isolated measures toward a comprehensive package, which would make unpopular reforms easier to enact.
In a separate dispute over voluntary benefits-like homeopathy-he opposes Andreas Gassen, the chairman of the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, who pushes for their elimination. Augurzky contends that removing all optional services would stifle competition among insurers. “If the state cuts all voluntary offerings that insurers can use to differentiate themselves, the market will lose a lot of competition” he said.