Financial healthcare reform vital, says German patients
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Walter Hirrlinger, president of the German handicapped and pensioners' association, VdK, last week demanded that the government reveal its plans for reforming the health system before next year's general election. "Our members have the right to know how health policy will affect them. After all it can be a question of life or death," he said. Mr Hirrlinger insisted that an improvement in the financial situation of the larger statutory health insurance funds must take priority, but conceded that more changes were necessary. The governing coalition would have to take action to curb the deficit of these funds in order to avoid a rise in contribution rates, he added.