Germany: Health “reforms” at the expense of the working population

Contrary to earlier government announcements, the health reform bill will now be brought before parliament after regional elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Pomerania on September 17. The grand coalition of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Social Democratic Party (SPD) are clearly afraid that any public debate of the so-called “reforms” might damage their chances in these upcoming elections.

In order to ensure the health reforms are effective from January 1, 2007, talks are already being held with the various state governments, which must agree the bill in the Bundesrat (Upper House of Parliament). Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) expressed her confidence that the health reforms will begin as planned on January 1 next year.

At present, contributions are levied directly by scores of health insurance schemes. But under the reforms, a new fund will be set up to administer the statutory health insurance payments, which fund Germany’s €140 billion ($180 billion) annual costs for the health care system.

The “Health Fund”—the central feature of the reforms—will only be introduced from July 1, 2008. This central fund will pool all contributions by employers and workers, combining them with some tax revenues, with contributions by workers and employers set to rise by a half percentage point. But if these contributions are still insufficient, auxiliary premiums can be levied.

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http://wsws.org/articles/2006/sep2006/germ-s02.shtml