To get to a specialist appointment for NHS patients is often not so easy and it’s frustrating. While you may need to wait months, come private patients next week. So something is not happening everywhere, says Minister of health, Jens Spahn (CDU). But to often.
Just for the first anniversary of its existence, the coalition government has sealed a range of concrete Changes, in order to counter it – without the whole System to topple. The abbreviation sounds like a sports club: TSVG. The newly adopted “date of service – care law” will help millions of NHS patients when it comes to doctor’s appointments. How well it can work? Financial enticements to get Doctors into the boat. Patient advocates fear but also new pitfalls.
Where is the Problem?
Long waiting times are a controversy, even if doctors talk to representatives from a “perceived problems”. The Situation is not the same everywhere, as the kassenärztliche bundesvereinigung (KBV) in a study made to determine: medical specialist appointments almost a third of respondents had to wait according to its own information, more than three weeks. In contrast, each Second came by the house doctor good within three days. In the case of ear-nose-throat-Doctors, it goes faster than urologists and wife doctors. Differences according to the cashier, there are mainly the specialist: As 34 per cent of NHS patients had to wait more than three weeks, but only 18 per cent of private patients.
What should change in the practices?
Physicians will have to visit 25 instead of 20 hours a week Insured for by law as in practice or at home. Many say that they do this for a long time and on average more than 50 hours of work. These Doctors should not be protected from colleagues, completing your doctor of seat, argued Spahn. In the case of eyes-, women -, and ENT Doctors, it must be in the future five hours per week of drop-in office time – as a kind of overflow valve for spontaneous cases. Doctors warn that could lead to a long Sit in the waiting room. “State requirements for the practice guidance to help anyone, but young Doctors of a branch”, complained doctors President Frank Ulrich Montgomery.
What is provided in the case of the Appointment to be made?
Since 2016, there are “date of service” of the physicians ‘ associations, which provide telephone appointments with specialists within four weeks. Depending on the state, but they have different numbers and on different days to different times. 1. January 2020 is nationwide apply: Every day, around the clock, under the number 116 117, also online and via mobile App. In addition to offering appointments in the house and children, physicians should also. Left-health politicians Achim Kessler declared but already doubts about whether the Authorities really do at night to 4 o’clock placements.
How should Doctors be encouraged?
A crucial lever for improvement should be incentives for Doctors. For example, at least 10 euros extra, if a doctor makes the Referral, in a minute, that you get a urgent appointment with the specialist. Extra rewards should be, if Doctors taking new patients in the practice. As a result, the height of the doctor’s fee might be, but decide on waiting times, warns the head of the consumer Federation, Klaus Müller. The chronically Ill and the elderly, who are already in treatment, are in need of your doctor often more frequently, warns the Executive Board of the German Foundation for patient protection, Eugen Brysch. You could get more difficult appointments, when Doctors only to address new patients on my concentrated.
Faster appointment with the specialist: What is the cost?
The statutory health insurance funds, the numbers so far, 40 billion euros per year for physician professional fees, is likely to face more expenditure of up to 800 million euros. Green and Left the punters, it was too expensive and clientele policy for physicians. “Who dealt with more, should be paid better,” justifies the Spahn and refers to the thick financial cushion of many funds. SPD parliamentary group Deputy Karl Lauterbach explained previously, Doctors would have earned part of nothing, if you add new patients, which is also expensive. For practices on the Land in the future, guaranteed supplements are provided.
What to do with digitization?
With the law Spahn wants to make pace for new digital services. It is the introduction of a voluntary E-patient records no later than 2021 writes – after the tug of war had become more functions for the electronic health card something like “of the Berlin airport of the health care system”. The Ministry assumes 51 percent of the Gematik-Gesellschaft, which also takes care of the structure of a data highway in Protest of the previous carrier in the industry. Starting in 2021, it is to give of incapacity to work certificates (“yellow Certificates”) in the case of prolonged illness, in digital Form.
