NRW Municipal Association reaches agreement with health insurers on transitional solution for costs of non-transport emergency calls

The state government's compromise proposal picks up on the health insurers' offer to cover at least part of the costs this year for operations in which no patient is ultimately taken to hospital. The original idea in the talks had been to conclude a framework agreement between municipalities, health insurers, and the state, it was said. However, this framework agreement cannot be realised according to the Municipal Association: one must acknowledge that this "cannot be realised" ("nicht verwirklichen lässt").

Municipal Association sees emergency services under pressure

The cities in NRW nevertheless feel themselves under pressure due to the planned austerity course of the insurers. The board of the NRW Municipal Association demands that the emergency services "must not come under pressure" ("darf nicht unter Druck geraten"). The health insurers' plans lead to "considerable funding gaps in the system" ("zu erheblichen Finanzierungslücken im System"). The resolution of the Municipal Association's board, which is available to the German Press Agency, was passed on Tuesday and expresses concern about the consequences of non-cost-covering financing of the emergency services in NRW cities.

The emergency services are a major achievement in terms of public safety and the care of sick people, the paper continues. The Municipal Association emphasises that otherwise, in the worst case, all patients who need an ambulance would have to be asked to pay. That would be a fundamental break with the previous system, in which rescue services are financed through the health insurers.

High millions in amounts missing

The municipalities had originally demanded full reimbursement of the costs for non-transport calls. The missing amounts add up to high single- to double-digit million figures according to the Municipal Association. Given the dramatic municipal financial situation, the cities could not finance these sums without support from the federal government or the state.

The transitional solution is, from the cities' perspective, at best a partial success. Money will still flow this year, but a permanent solution is not in sight. The board of the NRW Municipal Association is coming together this Wednesday in Oberhausen for its general meeting, where the board is to be newly elected, among other things. The financing of the emergency services will be one of the dominant topics.

General meeting in Oberhausen

Karl-Josef Laumann, who has accompanied the negotiations on behalf of the state, sees the compromise as at least a first step. At the same time, it remains unclear whether the transitional solution will actually be supported by the insurers or whether the cities will ultimately be left bearing most of the costs. One thing is clear: the municipalities are insisting on a reliable arrangement that secures the emergency services in their current form.

If no permanent solution emerges, the Municipal Association sees a sharpening of the situation that will directly affect citizens. Because if the municipalities cannot bridge the difference between actual costs and insurer reimbursements, the bill could in future land with the patients – a scenario the cities want to prevent with all their might.