Social Association Germany (SoVD)
Berlin (ots)
Michaela Engelmeier, SoVD Chairwoman: “The draft law to amend the Independent patient advice is lacking in solidarity and creates unnecessary dependencies. This is not in the interests of patients.”
The Independent Patient Advice Service Germany (UPD) benefits all those who are already ill or will become ill. As a non-profit organization, it advises patients and consumers on health and health law issues on a statutory basis. This increases, among other things, the health literacy of the population and the sovereignty of patients. Now the UPD is to be converted into a foundation and a corresponding draft law is to be passed in the Bundestag this Thursday.
This not only contains good ideas and measures. SoVD chairwoman Michaela Engelmeier is also critical of the latest version of the draft law: “We are alarmed that the patient organizations are not taking over the sponsorship, but are only supposed to be involved with 7 out of 15 votes in the foundation board. This does not guarantee that the advisory associations at all To be able to offer consulting services. Here, without any need, the competencies of SoVD, VdK, consumer centers and others as well as a comprehensive range of consulting services are dispensed with.”
The SoVD CEO is also dissatisfied with the sovereignty of the UPD. “The position of the health insurers is to be strengthened. This endangers the ‘U’ of the UPD – independence! In order for the statutory health insurance to finance the UPD, it should be given considerable say in return. This is trading to the detriment of the patients”, like Engelmeier. Michaela Engelmeier finds that the private health insurance should not be made compulsory at all “in the highest degree lacking in solidarity. The private health insurance would only have to co-finance it ‘voluntarily’. One can imagine how that works. From the point of view of the SoVD, the independent patient advice a task for society as a whole and must be paid for from taxes, not from the contributions of those with statutory health insurance.”
Press contact:
SoVD Federal Association
press office
Peter Michael Zernechel
Press spokesman (ViSdP)
Stralauer Strasse 63
10179 Berlin
Phone: 030/72 62 22 333
Fax: 030/72 62 22 328
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @sovd_bund
Original content from: Sozialverband Deutschland (SoVD), transmitted by news aktuell
