Lauterbach’s project: What will become of the care reform?

Status: 05/12/2023 12:59 p.m

Minister of Health Lauterbach wants to relieve those in need of care and stabilize the income from care insurance. So far he has had to take a lot of criticism for his reform plans. Will the big hit still succeed?

There is intense fighting behind the scenes. The health and care politicians of the traffic light coalition want to improve the draft by Health Minister Karl Lauterbach for the care support and relief law.

Janosch Dahmen, health policy spokesman for the Greens in the Bundestag, is also at the negotiating table. “At the moment I can’t say conclusively whether the result at the end is sufficient or not. But it can be said clearly that the need is so great that, in my group’s opinion, there is still a lot of room for improvement.”

The traffic light coalition has set itself the goal of relieving those in need of care and their relatives financially. But the planned care reform has become a “little reform”, criticize members of the Bundestag from various parties. Above all, care at home is far too neglected in the draft law.

An overview of the most important points of the draft law on long-term care reform
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VdK: Increase in care allowance too low

This week, the trade associations followed suit. The focus of the criticism: the increase in care allowance. After six years without an increase, financial support will only increase by five percent in the coming year, says Verena Bentele from the VdK social association. “Anyone who knows how the price increases are for food, but also for hygiene articles and other things, for example, knows that this care allowance is not sufficient at all. The providers who offer daily structure, for example, are becoming more expensive. And that simply means that people can afford less of the care allowance.”

Another big point of criticism: A planned relief budget is not in the draft law. Previous individual services such as short-term and respite care should be bundled in the budget so that those affected have an easier time applying for support and can use the money more flexibly. “According to an extrapolation by the VdK, around twelve billion euros in benefits that are actually available to people from long-term care insurance are not being used at all, and there must be a remedy,” Bentele demands.

The federal government wants to reduce the cost of care. The Bundestag sees a need for improvement in the plans.
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Lauterbach: Are at a turning point

Many members of the Bundestag are pushing for the relief budget to be passed into law after all. But despite the funds not being called up, there is a big hole in the long-term care insurance fund: a deficit of more than two billion euros.

Health Minister Lauterbach therefore wants to increase the contribution rate for long-term care insurance by 0.35 percentage points from July. However, the SPD politician emphasizes: “One thing is clear: we are at a turning point when it comes to long-term financing. The system cannot be permanently expanded as we have done. It has to be different.”

Because society is getting older, the number of people in need of care is increasing – care cannot be financed in the future with increases in contributions alone, says care politician Erich Irlstorfer from the CSU. “And that’s why it will be unavoidable that care is also cross-subsidized from the tax revenue.”

What Health Minister Lauterbach wants to change in care and why there is criticism of the plans.
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But just a “reform”?

Green politician Janosch Dahmen is also in favor of more tax money for care. However, he refers to the currently difficult budget deliberations with Finance Minister Christian Lindner: “All of this makes it difficult for policymakers to come up with good solutions, including for nursing care – and it is certainly something that overshadows this legislative process in the parliamentary process .” It doesn’t sound like the much-criticized “little care reform” will turn into a reform after all.

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