Massive criticism has erupted over the proposed adjustment to Germany’s hospital reform, coming from both the Greens and the statutory health insurance funds. Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) is said to have shifted the reform in key areas rather than adapting it – a claim made by Greens’ health policy spokesperson Janosch Dahmen in an interview with “Der Spiegel”.
While a commission is expected to present savings proposals for insurers by the end of March, Warken’s ministry is simultaneously authorizing structural additional spending in the billions, Dahmen argued. “This contradicts fiscal policy and undermines every credibility of contribution stability” he said.
Warken is currently negotiating the hospital adjustment law (KHAG) with the federal states. According to “Spiegel” reports, she will host a video conference with her state colleagues on Monday evening.
The concessions Warken is offering face opposition from the Greens due to potential consequences for patients. “The planned exceptions regarding quality requirements and specialization weaken the reform at its core” Dahmen added.
Health insurers are also uneasy about the law. Jens Baas, CEO of Techniker Krankenkasse, told “Spiegel” that the hospital reform should future‑proof the health system and raise quality standards, but the current draft dilutes those goals and entrenches outdated clinic structures. “If this law is passed in its present form, patients will be the ones to suffer” Baas warned, noting that it would not improve the quality of care. “It is the employers and employees who pay the price through unnecessarily high health‑insurance contributions”.
