Employer President Dr. Hundt speaks at the 1st Berlin Forum “Economy and Health”

21.09.2010 11:52

Dormant efficiency reserves

“There are significant efficiency reserves lying dormant in the statutory health insurance system,” explained employer president Dr. Dieter Hundt on the occasion of the 1st Berlin Forum “Economy and Health”, which the Confederation of German Employers’ Associations (BDA) organized in Berlin a few days ago. A study by the Rheinisch-Westfälische Wirtschaftsforschungsinstitut (RWI) estimates these efficiency reserves in statutory health insurance to be up to 10 billion euros. Hundt: “That’s a lot, that’s too much – after all, a whole contribution rate point in statutory health insurance. This enormous potential must be leveraged - in the interest of all contributors and good health care in Germany." For the employer president, it is almost paradoxical that Germany, on the one hand, has the third highest public health expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product of all OECD countries, but only in terms of medical performance occupy a middle place. “Some of our neighboring countries – e.g. B. Italy – pay less and still live longer,” said Hundt.

Read the full statement from Dr. Dieter Hundt here.

Read more about the 1st Berlin Forum “Economy and Health” in the next issue of “Monitor Health Services Research”.