Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) plans to take action against internet providers who issue illness certificates without actual consultation with a doctor. As part of the coalition’s initiative to tighten sick leave regulations, Warken announced to Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland that she will soon present concrete proposals to block the issuance of sick leave via online forms that lack medical contact. She stated that this measures aims to put an end to widespread abuse of the system. Both the Union and the SPD had already agreed within the coalition contract to exclude online sick leave documentation originating from “obscure platforms on the internet.”
Warken also defended the coalition’s decision to abolish sick leave documentation provided by phone. However, she confirmed that obtaining a certificate through a video consultation will remain possible. The CDU politician added that people are not necessarily obliged to visit a doctor’s office when they are unwell.
