Dietmar Woidke (SPD), Prime Minister of Brandenburg. /image alliance, Soeren Stache
Potsdam Brandenburg is pushing for financial security for hospitals as part of the federal government’s planned hospital reform. Yesterday, after a summit with hospitals, health insurers and the state government, Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) called on the federal government not to support the clinics until 2026 as planned.
Furthermore, the federal government should not finance its share of aid for the transition period with money from health insurance companies, which is controversial, but rather from the federal budget. This would provide enough security for everyone. He committed to the goal of maintaining all locations. We are together across our hospital locations in Brandenburg. He highlighted that Brandenburg had already completed a hospital renovation in the 1990s.
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) is planning to change the current fixed-rate remuneration system for treatment cases in order to ease the pressure on clinics to handle more and more cases. In the future, they should receive 60% of the remuneration just for making offers.
Smaller clinics in particular fear negative consequences. At the country’s second hospital summit, those involved agreed that the plans had to be changed. The President of the Brandenburger District DayOberspreewald-Lausitz district administrator Siegurd Heinze (independent) warned: Not all houses are doing well economically, but they also have problems.
Brandenburg Health Minister Ursula Nonnemacher (Greens) referred to criticism of the reform from all federal states. Calendars cannot be implemented and opportunities for cooperation between hospitals and doctors’ offices are not sufficient. “We are a sparsely populated area,” she said. Supply must work for us too. Nonnemacher does not expect any closures as a result of the reform, but she calls for further development of hospitals.
Hospitals warn of disaster. We share the state’s opinion that the reform that is currently being conceived should not happen because it would ultimately lead to a disaster in large areas for a large country like Brandenburg, said the CEO of the State Hospital Association (LKB), Detlef Troppens. There is an excess supply, but it is not distributed equally. The reform could work in big cities, Troppens said.
The Carl Thiem Clinic (CTK) in Cottbus believes that clinical reform is necessary, but is pushing for comprehensive care for Brandenburg. In the context of changing demographics, the growing shortage of skilled workers, the rise in outpatient care and the recent decline in the number of inpatient cases, it is indisputable in expert circles that we need hospital reform, a spokesperson said.
Planned remuneration for the provision of services independent of treatment is essential to guide care according to needs. Especially in a country with large areas, it is a particular challenge to design and subsequently implement reform approaches in such a way that no gaps in care emerge. . © dpa/aerzteblatt.de