New regulation: Children's sick leave is also possible by telephone from December 18, 2023 - financial expert gives advice

New regulation: Children's sick leave is also possible by telephone from December 18, 2023 - financial expert gives advice

According to a report by amp.infranken.de,

Parents can now obtain medical certificates for the care of sick children by telephone and without a separate visit to the practice. These certificates entitle you to receive child sickness benefit for a maximum of five days. Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach called for this regulation to prevent infections in waiting rooms, and it has now come into force. Previously, parents with sick children had to go to the practice in person to obtain a certificate entitling them to be released from work. The health insurance company then covers a large part of the loss of earnings and usually pays 90 percent of the lost net wages as child sickness benefit.

This new regulation, which introduces the possibility of taking sick leave over the telephone for sick children up to the age of twelve, is expected to relieve the burden on parents as they no longer have to go to the practice in person. It also helps to reduce the spread of infections in practices.

The impact on the market and the financial industry could be that there may be an increase in absenteeism due to caring for sick children. This could lead to increased use of child sickness benefit and a corresponding burden on health insurance companies. Companies will also have to expect more parents to be absent from work for short periods of time as a result of this new regulation.

Overall, however, the introduction of telephone sick leave for children is a sensible measure that protects the health of the population and helps parents during this challenging time.