District Council Stade calls for millions for clinics - alarm level red!

District Council Stade calls for millions for clinics - alarm level red!

A dramatic step for health care in Stade! In a special meeting with an overwhelming majority, the Stader district council adopted a resolution on the controversial hospital reform of Health Minister Karl Lauterbach. But here comes the crux of the matter: the resolution is not directed against the reform itself, but against the catastrophic financing of the clinics by the federal government, the state and health insurance companies. The increasing costs and inflation put the hospitals under massive pressure in Lower Saxony, and many counties have to apply millions to cover the deficits. A real drama for the health landscape!

The session, which began with a delay of 40 minutes, was the result of intensive preparations in the non-public district committee. Here the resolution text was revised until the last minute. The final text, which was finally accepted with 40 votes, is a compromise that found the support of the SPD and the Greens. These agreed to mitigate the original claims to ensure a uniform procedure. A central point was the deletion of a passage that said that the district would no longer grant liquidity grants if the country did not involve half of the country. Instead, an increase in municipal financial equalization was required.

financial burdens for the clinics

The resolution calls for a well thought -out and fully financed reform of the hospital system in Germany. The district council clearly appeals to the Lower Saxony state government to reject the draft of the hospital care improvement law (KHVVVG), as long as not all loss of inflation are compensated for by 2024. The MPs agree: the Elbe clinics and their over 3,000 employees must be protected from the financial difficulties. District Administrator Kai Seefried made it clear that the counties in the former administrative district of Lüneburg will raise 54 million euros last year for the support of their clinics and that this total will increase to 67 million euros this year. A worrying trend!

The central requirement remains: the financing of the clinics must be ensured in order not to endanger excellent medical care. Responsibility for the financing must not be burdened on the municipalities that are already under enormous pressure. The situation is critical and the time is pushing!