The head of the Association of Statutory Medical Doctors (KBV), Andreas Gassen, has urged Federal Health Minister Carsten Linnemann (CDU) to initiate a complete overhaul of Germany’s preventative health measures. Gassen stated to the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” that Germany performs poorly on the international stage when it comes to preventing illness. He noted that Germans are statistically heavier, smoke more, and engage in less physical activity compared to other nations.
According to Gassen, substantial efforts must be directed toward early interventions, particularly in kindergartens and schools. He stressed the importance of helping children learn early about healthy eating habits, promoting movement, and distancing themselves from self-destructive consumption patterns. Furthermore, he asserted that the public health service requires strengthening, an promise that he claimed was not fulfilled during the COVID-19 period.
Gassen commented on the previous government’s approach under Nina Warken (CDU), which included raising taxes on tobacco and high-proof alcohol by twenty percentage points. He suggested this was likely primarily designed to increase state revenue rather than effectively deter consumption. In his view, significantly higher prices would be necessary to dissuade people from smoking and excessive drinking, arguing that a bottle of vodka would need to be five or ten euros more expensive. Similarly, he found that merely raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by two euros was insufficient, insisting that the government should have applied much higher levies. If young people could not afford these products, they would ideally stop using them, which would simultaneously reduce health costs for the country.
The KBV chief also offered a critique of former Health Minister Warken’s efforts concerning preventative care. He described the CDU politician’s July 16th presentation of prevention plans as nearly cynical. He pointed out that introducing such a campaign only a week after the government passed a spending package through the Bundestag that was expected to lead to fewer preventative check-ups seemed contradictory. Moreover, he suggested that Warken’s plans lacked a clear strategy for genuinely strengthening preventative medicine, viewing the initiative as “something akin to an alibi event.”
