The restructuring of the hospitals is to be altered in parts, as the federal government and the states want. The Green Party health policy spokesman Janosch Dahmen regards this as wrong.
dpa | The Green Party health policy spokesman Janosch Dahmen warned against diluting the hospital reform through the plans of the black-red federal government. The situation of small basic and emergency hospitals in rural areas would deteriorate further as a result, Dahmen said on ARD’s Morning Magazine.
Because of the planned extensive exemptions, a patchwork quilt will emerge in Germany, he explained. “Costs for hospital expenditures will continue to rise, while quality declines,” he said. His conclusion: “This law is ultimately the wrecking ball of the hospital reform, and not progress but a setback.”
The previous traffic-light coalition had decided the hospital reform. The then Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) pushed it through despite protests from the states. It came into force at the beginning of 2025 and is to be implemented gradually by 2029. The network of 1,700 clinics is likely to shrink. The reform is intended to ease the financial pressure on hospitals and to achieve more specialization in more complex procedures.
Warken Seeks Adjustments
After the Black-Red coalition took office with Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU), the federal government and the states agreed to refine the reform. Warken had stated that the aim was to adjust it so that it would be effective, but also practical for everyday use. The focus includes longer transition periods and more flexible guidelines for rural regions.
According to a study published at the end of August by Munich-based consulting firm Roland Berger, the hospitals’ distress is growing ever more: last year, three-quarters of clinics posted losses, and among public institutions it was almost 90 percent. This represents a clear increase compared with previous years.
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