Obesity - the untreated disease

Health experts draw attention to maladjustments in care and discuss constructive solutions

02/12/2014

Anyone who suffers from a malignant tumor disease receives extensive therapeutic help. On the other hand, those who are overweight or obese due to morbidity are not adequately cared for. The general conditions of the German health care system currently only restrict the treatment of obese patients. Representatives of doctors, medical professionals, health insurances and politics at a symposium of the German Network on Obesity - D.N.A. attending the Diabetes Fall Conference and the Obesity Annual Meeting on November 22, 2014 in Leipzig.

Dr. Birgit Schilling-Maßmann, general practitioner and nutritionist, illustrated case studies with minimal therapeutic options for obese patients in medical practice. Treated are only secondary diseases such as diabetes. The urgently needed immediate treatment of the cause of illness by a multidisciplinary team of therapists is so far only possible in individual cases on the basis of regional special agreements with the health insurance companies.

Eva Walzik, head of the Berlin office of DAK-Gesundheit, stressed that the risk structure compensation (RSA), through which the health insurance companies receive their financial resources, set the wrong incentives. Because the money is currently being distributed so that health insurance with many healthy insured get more money from the RSA than they need for their care. Multimorbidity, which almost always occurs in connection with the diagnosis of obesity, is chronically underfunded in the RSA.

Also Dietrich Monstadt, Member of the Bundestag and rapporteur for u. a. Obesity and diabetes of the working group health of the CDU / CSU parliamentary group of the CDU / CSU parliamentary group, is aware of the system deficiencies and sees societal need for action. However, he did not leave it at system criticism, but made the concrete offer to the present professional associations, health insurance companies and patient representatives to jointly develop a key issues paper on obesity and to work towards a change in the framework.

The German Network for Obesity and the DAK-Health see Monstadt's offer as a constructive advance and will continue its dialogue with the health politician in the New Year. (Pm)

Image: Petra Bork