Concerns are mounting over the potential failure of Germany’s planned care reform, with the Federal Government’s Care Commissioner, Katrin Staffler (CSU), urging a substantial increase in federal funding. Staffler cautioned that the reform’s success hinges on Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) providing more than the currently earmarked loan provisions.
Speaking to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland, Staffler emphasized that structural adjustments to services alone are insufficient to ensure the long-term financial stability of the care insurance system. While acknowledging the current budgetary constraints, she asserted that prioritizing the care system’s funding is a critical societal imperative.
The commissioner highlighted an outstanding debt of over five billion euros owed to the care insurance system by the federal government, stemming from the period during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, she argued that the financial burden of supporting informal caregivers and training care personnel should not fall squarely on the shoulders of insurance contributors, a combined cost exceeding six billion euros annually. She drew a comparison to the publicly funded training of doctors, emphasizing its importance.
Staffler did not rule out the possibility of unpopular decisions emerging from the joint federal-state working group tasked with implementing the reform. She stated that definitive progress necessitates fundamental changes to the scope and delivery of care services, suggesting that the group’s final recommendations may involve difficult choices. The potential for reform failure underscores the urgency of the situation and the need for a significant investment in the care sector.
