(de-news.net) – A compromise concerning the Federal Government’s proposed savings package for compulsory health insurance was reached on Thursday by the mediation committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat. According to the Bundesrat, reductions in hospital compensation will be limited to the year 2026, ensuring that subsequent years remain unaffected. The one‑time cut was therefore designed not to undermine the long‑term financial stability of clinics. Katharina Schenk, Health Minister of Thuringia (SPD), welcomed the decision, stressing that meaningful hospital reform could not proceed if new funding gaps were simultaneously being created. She argued that the agreement had prevented lasting damage to the country’s clinical infrastructure.
The savings plan, amounting to two billion euros and embedded in the so‑called Nursing Competence Act, had previously been blocked by the Bundesrat and referred to the mediation committee for further negotiation. Critics from the Länder contended that hospitals would be disproportionately burdened, emphasizing that responsibility for hospital financing rests with the states. Under the compromise, hospitals are expected to absorb savings of 1.8 billion euros, while an additional 100 million euros will be drawn respectively from the statutory insurance innovation fund and the administrative budgets of the insurers. Final approval of the package by both Bundestag and Bundesrat is scheduled for Friday, marking the conclusion of a contentious legislative process.
The precarious financial situation of statutory health insurers provided the impetus for the government’s initiative. Several funds had already announced increases in supplemental contributions beyond the agreed average of 2.9 percent for the coming year, citing mounting fiscal pressures. Despite the compromise, insurers expressed skepticism that the package would be sufficient to avert further contribution hikes by January 2026. They warned that structural imbalances in the financing system might persist, raising doubts about whether temporary savings measures could deliver sustainable relief.
