Federal Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) plans to push the proposed changes to the hospital reform through the Bundestag and the Bundesrat by the end of March. “Our goal is to avoid the mediation committee” she told RTL and ntv.
Warken intends to present a unified hospital‑reform adaptation law that would allow the reform to commence. “The states also want this, so I believe we can achieve it together” she said. The Länder are requesting further exemptions and adjustments to the upfront payment scheme (Vorhaltevergütung). “We can reach a compromise that doesn’t address every point the states raise, but may still accommodate some of their concerns”.
She stressed that she does not wish to imply that the states are only interested in protecting clinics. A transformation of the hospital landscape is deemed necessary. “Our shared objective, and it must remain so, is that genuine changes occur” she added. Residents are already uneasy at the mention of a hospital‑reform. “There will be changes, closures, and the consolidation of facilities” Warken warned.
