Municipal Association Demands Billions for Heat Protection in Hospitals and Care Homes

Focus on Vulnerable Groups

According to the association, those particularly affected are older people and those in need of care, whose cardiovascular systems can quickly become overloaded in high temperatures. In inpatient facilities, summers with prolonged heat repeatedly lead to health emergencies that could be avoided with better room temperatures, adapted daily routines, and additional staff. Patients in hospitals, for example in intensive care units or operating rooms, also depend on reliable cooling.

The association criticizes the fact that heat protection has so far been treated primarily as a voluntary municipal additional task, while the financial leeway of many cities and municipalities is tight. The federal government and the states must clearly regulate which costs will be permanently covered and how funding programs will be reliably resourced. Only in this way can comprehensive standards be achieved in hospitals and care facilities that go beyond isolated individual measures.

Spiegler emphasized that heat protection is now part of public services. The municipalities expect the upcoming round of consultations between the federal and state governments to deliver concrete commitments, such as an increase in existing climate funding pots or the creation of a new special program. Better coordination with civil protection and public health authorities is also needed in order to be able to respond in a coordinated manner during long heat waves.

Disputed Financing

As a further weak point, the association names the building regulations for new construction in the healthcare and care sector. During renovations and new construction, stricter standards for insulation, shading, and passive cooling must apply so that buildings can achieve tolerable indoor temperatures even without continuous air conditioning. The investments would pay off in the long term, since heat damage, treatment interruptions, and increased care effort already cause high follow-up costs today.

The Städte- und Gemeindebund also points to experiences from the summer in which individual facilities in Bavaria temporarily reported critical temperatures. Reports of incidents at a correctional facility such as JVA Kaisheim, as well as of phases with increased burdens in care facilities, also showed that the heat resilience of public infrastructure as a whole needs to be strengthened. The municipalities are therefore calling for a comprehensive heat protection plan that covers buildings, personnel, and emergency plans alike.

Next Steps Toward the Federal Government

The association announced that it will bring the issue into the upcoming talks with the federal government and push for it to be anchored in the Climate Adaptation Act. Municipalities need planning certainty in order to be able to invest in their properties in the long term. Otherwise, a two-tier provision threatens, in which financially strong cities can make their facilities climate-resilient, while poorer municipalities are left behind.