/image alliance, Christian Merz
Berlin The planned hospital reform, emergency care reform and the Health Care Strengthening Act (GVSG) must be coordinated and take emergency services into account. The federal association AOK defends this.
In order to alleviate the burden on hospital emergencies, the currently announced project aims to improve the accessibility of outpatient medical care structures. That makes sense. However, it would also be logical to reincorporate interprofessional primary care centers and other approaches to increase the accessibility of primary care and better acute care in the GVSG, Carola Reimann, CEO of the Federal Association AOK, emphasized today.
Furthermore, family doctor structures should be further developed and flanked by strong control centers with an initial assessment function, says Reimann. Only then will it be possible to ensure that acute emergency care can also be provided on an outpatient basis. Private health insurance (PKV) must also contribute adequately to the costs of this improved infrastructure.
The Federal Association AOK also sees a need to adapt the concept of the Integrated Emergency Center (INZ). It is clear that we must reduce the rate of hospitalization for supposed emergencies through better patient management. However, the concept of the now planned creation of INZ remains based on the idea of sectoral separation, says Reimann.
From the perspective of the Federal Association AOK, the INZ should function as fully integrated, independent and professionally independent organizational units that have their own medical and non-medical personnel as well as appropriate equipment. The bill has so far fallen short in this regard.
Reimann also misses the consideration of emergency services in the emergency reform bill. After years of discussion on emergency care reform, better cooperation between emergency and life-saving care services must not fail due to different responsibilities and political roadblocks. Here’s hoping that the federal and state governments finally live up to their responsibility to create sustainable and bankable structures.
In fact, savings in this area can only be expected when patient management actually becomes more efficient and retention structures are rationalized accordingly, emphasized the CEO of the Federal Association AOK.
In AOK’s opinion, synchronization with parallel hospital reform is crucial for the success of an emergency care reform and for realizing the anticipated savings potential. Emergency reform can only be successful with the help of effective hospital reform that reduces inpatient overcapacity in a targeted, quality-oriented way.
So far, the continued decline in the number of cases in hospitals has not resulted in any financial relief for statutory health insurance, Reimann said. Since the corona pandemic, hospitals have treated on average ten percent fewer cases than in 2019. However, the increase in hospital expenses continues unabated. Newly published GKV financial data for the first quarter of 2024 shows a further increase in hospital spending by 9.5 percent. © EB/aha/aerzteblatt.de