Nationwide uniform doctor fees?

Fee negotiations between doctors and health insurances: The German Medical Association is in favor of nationwide uniform physician fees.

Today the fee negotiations between medical representatives and health insurance companies take place. In the run-up, Frank Ulrich Montgomery, Vice-President of the German Medical Association, was in favor of installing uniform tariffs for physicians nationwide.

Before the beginning of the negotiations on the tariffs of the physicians, the Deputy Federal Chamber of Physicians made a strong commitment to introduce uniform doctors' fees. So Montgomery told the Rheinische Post: „Legislators must ensure that no lower fees are paid in North Rhine for the same medical treatment than in Bavaria“. The pressure is growing and the representatives of the lace associations are urged to find a solution. At the end of the tariff negotiations, the total amount of the fees of the approximately 150,000 doctors in the cash register system must be determined for the next year.

Only a week ago, the negotiations failed because the positions are completely divergent. But now the federal government responded and called on both parties to return to the negotiating table. Otherwise, the Federal Ministry of Health will set the tariffs. Only because of the built-up pressure now the top representatives have to make compromises, because otherwise the time runs away.

In the past year, the fees for GPs rose on average by 6.3 percent to 30.8 million euros. The statutory health insurance companies had repeatedly stressed that a clear round was necessary due to the financial situation of the health care system. But the position had to give up the coffers now, as the health care reform grants physicians an increase in fees. However, the Federal Ministry of Health had not mentioned specific figures, so negotiations are necessary. The German Medical Association requires more than two billion additional.

The main issue is the regional differences in doctors' fees. Doctors in Munich earn much more than, for example, land physicians in East German regions. It must now be seen how the regions can be served differently, without causing displeasure in the alleged losers. The black-yellow coalition has called for both top associations, with a „asymmetric regional approximation“ to avoid the relative disadvantage of individual federal states. Above all, doctors from the federal states of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia demand from the health insurance companies far higher fees. (sb, 05.10.2010)

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Image: Dieter Schütz /Pixelio.de