Andreas Storm, the CEO of the statutory health insurance provider DAK-Gesundheit, has sharply criticized the plans put forward by the Federal Minister of Health, Nina Warken (CDU), for a sweeping health care reform. Speaking to the “Rheinische Post” Storm stated that the minister’s proposals have an “extreme imbalance” which could jeopardize the success of the planned statutory health insurance funding reform. He emphasized that anyone introducing such a large package of spending cuts for the health system must ensure a fair and equitable distribution of the burden.
According to the DAK chief, this balance is currently lacking. He pointed out that “the proposals burden almost exclusively the benefits area and the insured persons”. Furthermore, Storm noted that the plans completely fail to account for the necessary financing of statutory health care expenditures for individuals receiving citizen’s basic security payments (Bürgergeld). For Storm, this omission is unacceptable. He concluded that if the state government does not contribute to the costs of services not covered by insurance, the overall package will face an acceptance problem, and that mandatory adjustments are necessary.