/image alliance, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Markus Schreiber
Berlin – The first reading of the draft Health Care Strengthening Law (GVSG) today caused a heated discussion in the Bundestag. Opposition parties criticized the regulations for not going far enough – it was also highlighted that a number of measures that were actually planned were no longer included in the current cabinet draft.
The traffic light coalition responded that it was making significant improvements and would discuss further optimizations in the parliamentary process. After the debate, the MPs forwarded the GVSG model to the committees – the Health Committee is responsible for further discussions.
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) emphasized that we face “significant challenges”. It is important to continue providing good medical care in the future, despite the effects of demographic changes, doctor shortages and the increasing need for treatment. In particular, problems with family medical care must be “managed.”
In this regard, Lauterbach referred, among other things, to the de-budgeting of general practitioner practices – the “scourge” of budget limits will end. In any case, if there are few family doctors, it is not possible not to pay them for all the services they provide. Furthermore, certain remunerations are being converted into fixed rates and the costs of using drugs are being reduced.
The GVSG’s legislative package will also ensure improvements in the area of medical care and psychotherapeutic care, the Federal Health Minister said. Lauterbach had removed from the GVSG some points that were controversial in the coalition – but they should be brought up again in parliamentary deliberations.
This approach has struck a chord with the opposition. Health politician Tino Sorge (CDU) complained that although much had been announced, the current law had been “destroyed”. In addition, there are double standards when it comes to de-budgeting, as the budgetary limits for specialists remain unchanged. Alexander Föhr (CDU) also complained that “not much was left” of the originally planned regulations. In its current form, the GVSG “hardly offers any solutions”.
In the Bundestag, “the law that is already good will eventually become even better,” replied Armin Grau (Greens). Dirk-Ulrich Mende (SPD) argued similarly: “Of course” regulations are still missing, but they will be presented together. Union counterproposals he responded by stressing that introducing measures without a concept of counter-financing would be “a bit small”.
The federal presidents of Association of general practitionersNicola Buhlinger-Göpfarth and Markus Beier explained in the first reading of the GVSG that it represents the “most important reform project for family doctors in more than ten years”.
Now everyone involved would have to come together, “make the final improvements and then quickly bring the measures to life”. For general practitioners to benefit in the way intended by the government coalition, adjustments will have to be made – especially in the design of the calculation mechanism for de-budgeting.
“The budget is poison for health. This perception is also growing in politics. The abolition of mandatory deductions for general practitioners, as agreed in the coalition agreement, is long overdue and must now finally come with the GVSG,” stressed the Federal President of the VirchowbundDirk Heinrich. But the budgets for specialist medical care would also have to be dissolved; this could happen gradually, given the tense budgetary situation.
Heinrich stressed that so far there was no solid evidence from regions and specialized areas where the budget was temporarily suspended or suspended that this would lead to an unjustified expansion of services.
Psychotherapists call for funding for continuing education in psychotherapy
At the beginning of parliamentary deliberations on the GVSG, the Federal Chamber of Psychotherapists (BPtK) once again that the funding gap in psychotherapeutic training will be filled.
“It depends on the financing of psychotherapeutic training whether there will be enough specialist psychotherapists available on site in the future”, warned BPtK President Andrea Benecke today. Parliament must guarantee sufficient funding for psychotherapeutic training in practices, outpatient clinics and clinics.
So far, the bill has clearly failed here, criticized the professional association of German psychologists (BDP). The financing of ongoing training in psychotherapy must be regulated by law, in order to guarantee the long-term provision of psychological and psychotherapeutic services to the population.
There was also criticism from health insurers. “The current bill in its current form has been stripped of all innovative care elements,” said the CEO of the AOK Federal Association, Carola Reimann. We call on the coalition members and parliamentary groups to definitely include this again in the law.
If the quarterly remuneration reference is waived for primary care, the Federal Association AOK also believes that additional regulations are needed to alternatively complete the RSA data set and ensure the correct recording of morbidity in the RSA classification model.
“After numerous attempts and drafts, the GVSG is now presented as a finalized bill. Now the Bundestag has to decide. Health insurance companies are calling on members of parliament to focus on the insured and implement real improvements in care,” said Franz Knieps, chairman of the BKK umbrella organization.
The “aimless distribution of statutory health insurance funds” must finally come to an end, because the scarce funds are urgently needed for real structural reforms, Knieps said. © bee/aha/aerzteblatt.de