Horst Seehofer and Krankenkassen at odds
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Despite its name, last week's Concerted Action in Healthcare meeting produced mainly disagreement between the German Health Minister, Horst Seehofer, and the Krankenkassen over cost containment. The Minister stated that Kassen, hospitals and doctors must adhere strictly to their budgets and take responsibility for developing and pursuing "concrete, effective and verifiable" cost reduction recommendations. The Kassen, however, refused to accept responsibility for the cost explosion and demanded that the Minister initiate immediate legislative measures to limit runaway costs in the hospital sector.