German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has expressed concern over the rising personal contributions required for nursing care. The FDP, part of the governing coalition, emphasizes the importance of private responsibility.
Berlin – Growing concerns about the future of nursing care are spreading across Germany as personal contributions to care costs continue to rise. Many are questioning the purpose of mandatory insurance, which people contribute to throughout their lives, if they cannot rely on adequate care in old age.
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has issued a warning about the substantial increase in personal contributions for nursing care if the financing system is not fundamentally reformed. “If we do nothing about this, we will reach personal contributions of 4,000 euros per month within a few years,” Lauterbach stated in an interview with the Funke Mediengruppe newspapers on Thursday, August 15.
FDP emphasizes private responsibility in nursing care financing
Many elderly people are already fearful of needing to enter a nursing home, as current personal contributions range between 2,600 euros and 3,300 euros per month, depending on the federal state, Lauterbach explained. He stressed that it is unacceptable for people in retirement to worry about whether they can afford care. “This is undignified,” said the SPD politician. Lauterbach also emphasized that maintaining care at the current level would be impossible without increasing funding. He announced that he would present a proposal after the summer break.
However, the Social Democratic health minister faces opposition from his coalition partner, the FDP, especially on social issues. Unlike the SPD and the Greens, as well as care researchers like Heinz Rothgang from the University of Bremen, the liberal FDP places more responsibility on individuals than on the welfare state. “It is also about people securing additional private insurance,” FDP Bundestag member Kristine Lütke responded to the concerns about care financing in an interview with Tagesschau.
Patient advocates warn of increasing personal contributions
There are significant doubts among associations and insurers regarding the strategy of shifting care problems onto private finances. “Since 2017, personal contributions for nursing home residents have increased by an average of 65%, and it is high time that politicians took action,” said Florian Lanz, spokesperson for the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds (GKV), to the news agency afp. He particularly urged federal states to fulfill their responsibility for financing nursing home investment costs. “This would immediately relieve each resident by an average of 485 euros per month,” Lanz stated. “Today, residents have to finance investments themselves through their personal contributions,” he criticized.
Nursing care insurance: Between state obligation and private funds. Nursing care insurance was introduced on January 1, 1995, as an independent branch of social insurance. It is mandatory for all those with statutory and private health insurance. Those who are statutorily insured are automatically covered by social nursing care insurance, while privately insured individuals must take out private nursing care insurance.
The benefits of social nursing care insurance are funded primarily through contributions shared equally by employees and employers. When and what kind of benefits are received depend on the duration of the need for care, the level of care required, and the type of care provided. Does someone only need help with daily washing and shopping? Can they orient themselves well? Can they live at home, or do they need 24-hour care in a nursing home? The extent of the limitations in independence and abilities determines the different levels of care, as stated on the website of the Federal Ministry of Health.
The primary goal is to enable individuals in need of care to live as independently as possible. However, social nursing care insurance often does not cover all care costs. The remaining expenses are borne by the individuals in need of care, their immediate family members, or – in cases of financial need – social assistance. This is why nursing care insurance is often referred to as a “partial benefit system.”
Patient advocates also called on the federal government and states at the beginning of July to take action. Eugen Brysch, chairman of the German Foundation for Patient Protection, urged that personal contributions for pure care services must be capped. He also called for an increase and dynamization of care allowances for relatives caring for individuals in need of care. “If the governing coalition fails to achieve this, nursing care insurance will remain patchwork,” Brysch warned.
