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Budgeting for general practitioners in Baden-Württemberg: A shortage of doctors threatens care
Find out in our article how the budgeting of general practitioners in Baden-Württemberg endangers care and what solutions are being planned. #General practitioners #Budgeting #Health policy
Budgeting for general practitioners in Baden-Württemberg: A shortage of doctors threatens care
General practitioners in Baden-Württemberg are facing a new challenge: budgeted remuneration from the 4th quarter of 2023. This means a drastic change, as not all general practitioner services have been fully reimbursed for a decade. The reason is that the health insurance companies are running out of money, as Karsten Braun, head of the Baden-Württemberg Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KVBW), explained.
Budgeting leads to uncertainty in planning, as health insurance companies have to allocate a fixed budget to general practitioners from which the services are paid. This may result in not all treatments being fully reimbursed if the overall budget is exhausted. Many people find this situation stressful, as family doctor Ralf Andler emphasizes.
Budgeting could have a negative impact, particularly in rural areas where there is already a shortage of general practitioners. The increased personnel costs could be difficult to bear, which could further increase the supply gaps in rural areas. Criticism of GP budgeting is widespread as it is seen as a slap in the face to those under high work pressure to ensure patient care.
However, there is hope for improvement with the new Health Care Strengthening Act (GVSG), which could abolish budgeting. Although implementation is still pending, general practitioner associations are cautiously optimistic. However, Dirk Heinrich, national chairman of the Virchowbund, emphasizes that further steps are necessary to solve the problems, especially in de-budgeting primary care specialists.
However, budgeting for general practitioners is not met with universal approval. Some health insurance companies see this as an increase in expenses at the expense of statutory health insurance. The National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds is already warning that these higher costs will ultimately have to be borne by the contributors. It remains to be seen how the situation will develop and whether the planned law will actually bring about an improvement for general practitioners.