Green Party counters health reform with bold cost-cutting plan
Just days before the cabinet is set to approve the planned health insurance reform, the Green Party's parliamentary group in the Bundestag has unveiled a counterproposal to Health Minister Nina Warken's (CDU) draft legislation. Their plan not only aims to stabilize contribution rates but also seeks to cut them by two percentage points as early as the start of next year.
According to reports published Sunday on the online portals of the Funke Media Group, a two-point reduction would relieve employees on middle incomes by around €420 per year. For those earning at the contribution assessment ceiling, the savings would amount to over €700 annually. At the same time, businesses would see relief totaling €15 billion per year.
The Greens' proposal includes key demands such as financing health insurance for citizens receiving unemployment benefits (Bürgergeld) through the federal budget, negotiating higher manufacturer rebates on pharmaceuticals, and strictly aligning statutory health insurance expenditures with revenue trends.
The Green Party's Bundestag faction is convening in Leipzig on Tuesday for a closed strategy meeting, where it plans to formally adopt the proposal. On Wednesday, the federal cabinet is expected to advance the draft legislation from Warken's ministry. The minister's plan aims to reduce the financial burden on statutory health insurance by nearly €20 billion by 2027. However, the Greens point out that the government's Health Finance Commission had identified potential savings of €42 billion. If certain measures are watered down, they argue, others must be implemented with even greater resolve.
In an interview with the Funke newspapers, Green parliamentary leader Britta Haßelmann criticized Warken's proposal as "fundamentally unbalanced." She insisted that it is possible to both strengthen healthcare and lower contributions for everyone. Addressing the government, Haßelmann added: "They convene a reform commission, graciously accept its recommendations—and then ignore them."
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