Berlin.
The finances of many clinics are in bad shape. The federal government wants to reform the system – but it may not have the rights to do so.
According to a study, the government commission’s proposals for hospital reform violate the provisions enshrined in the constitution Legislative competence the countries. “The Basic Law does not provide for legislative competence of the federal government either for the hospital system in general or for hospital planning in particular,” says the 144-page legal opinion, which is to be presented in Berlin on Thursday. The author of the study is Ferdinand Wollenschläger, Chair of Public Law, European Law and Public Commercial Law at the University of Augsburg.
The drafting was commissioned by the three union leaders health ministries in Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein. It was supposed to examine the constitutionality of the expert proposals submitted by the 17-member government commission on hospital reform at the behest of Karl Lauterbach (SPD). Also read: This radical change has been in the certificate of incapacity for work since 2023
Hospitals: According to the study, countries must retain a great deal of creative freedom
According to the expert report, even after the reform, the federal states must have considerable leeway for the hospitals stay in Germany. In short, the federal government should not make any regulations that affect the hospital structure of a federal state. also read: Professional tooth cleaning: Which health insurance companies pay
The concept presented by the expert commission in December is the basis on which the legislative plans are to be based. In federal-state consultations, however, some other priorities have already become clear. Basically that’s what it should be remuneration system be changed with flat rates for treatment cases in order to free clinics from economic pressure. In order not to be dependent on more and more cases, they should get a larger share just for the provision of services. Read more here: This is how the electronic patient record works
The focus is also on classifying the clinic network into three levels of care and financing them accordingly – from the level close to home primary care via a second stage with further offers up to maximum care providers such as university hospitals. Also interesting: Health insurance company rejects the application: why it’s worth objecting
Critics of the reform plans fear that this will emergency care and regular inpatient care cannot be maintained in many hospitals. Bavaria already presented a study in February, according to which every eighth hospital in the Free State is at risk. The municipalities had also repeatedly warned of a collapse in hospital care. (fmg/dpa)
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