The escalating share of personal contributions towards care costs is creating a critical need for legislative intervention to ensure the long-term viability of Germany’s care insurance system, according to health economist Heinz Rothgang of Bremen University.
Speaking to the Mediengruppe Bayern, Rothgang highlighted a concerning trend: approximately 70% of individuals requiring care are unable to cover the associated personal contributions from their retirement income. This situation, he argues, compromises the system’s core function – preventing care-related impoverishment. He urged policymakers to actively engage in addressing this issue.
Rothgang identified a dual financing problem as the most significant obstacle to a sustainable reform. He emphasized that this challenge necessitates a twin-pronged approach involving both setting an absolute cap on personal contributions for care recipients and exploring new funding streams for the care insurance system.
Beyond the financing dilemma, the economist suggested a broader range of potential adjustments to enhance the system’s resilience. These include potential reductions in care benefits, possibly targeted at individuals assessed at care level 1, or modifications to the assessment criteria used in care evaluations to potentially reduce the number of newly classified care recipients.
Rothgang further proposed a restructuring of care allowances, currently disbursed to recipients without specific usage stipulations. Redirecting these allowances directly to caregivers and attaching usage requirements could, he believes, generate substantial savings.
