(de-news.net) – A statement by Federal Drug Commissioner Hendrik Streeck (CDU) has ignited a debate on his proposal to introduce moderate patient co-payments for medical consultations. Streek asserted that the high frequency of doctor visits in Germany—averaging ten per person annually—places unsustainable pressure on the healthcare system, according to media reports. Critics, however, caution that such measures may entail significant social and medical risks.
Streeck maintains that a socially calibrated co-payment model could foster greater individual responsibility and incentivize preventive health behavior. He further advocates for legislative reforms aimed at reducing pharmaceutical costs and calls for a departure from what he terms the “full-coverage mentality,” arguing that healthcare should not be perceived as an all-inclusive entitlement provided by the state.
The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds has rejected the proposal. Vice Chair Stefanie Stoff-Ahnis contends that increasing patient contributions fails to address the underlying structural deficiencies of the system. Instead, the association recommends a spending moratorium that would align health insurance expenditures with revenue streams.
The German General Practitioners’ Association has also voiced strong opposition to the topic of blanket contact fees. In an earlier statement, Chair Nicola Buhlinger-Göpfarth described such ideas as socially inequitable and conceptually flawed. She warned that chronically ill patients would face disproportionate financial burdens and that essential medical visits could be deterred, potentially resulting in adverse health outcomes and increased long-term costs. As an alternative, she proposed a general practitioner-led primary care model to improve patient coordination.
Conversely, Andreas Gassen, Chair of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, argued that alternative financing mechanisms are unavoidable. He emphasized the need to offset costs incurred by non-working insured individuals in order to alleviate the financial strain on contributors.
Jan van Aken, leader of the Left Party, issued a sharp rebuke of Streeck’s proposal, accusing him of stigmatizing working individuals while personally contributing nothing to the statutory health system. Van Aken warned of the emergence of a “three-tier healthcare system” and called for the abolition of the income ceiling on social contributions to ensure a more equitable funding structure.
