More home visits, more afternoon appointments, and more treatments: changes to the financing of General practitioners (Hausarzt) are intended to improve care for patients in Germany. According to a statement released on Monday, the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians and the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds have agreed on a new financing model that requires practitioners to provide certain services.
Starting in January 2026, this model will apply with a so-called flat-rate fee and replace the old financing procedure. Around one-third of the money has previously been paid to clinics via a so-called structural flat rate – i.e., for providing care to patients in the first place. Around three billion euros are paid out for this without the clinics having to meet any conditions.
This is set to change at the turn of the year. Then, general practitioners will only receive money if they offer certain services that are core components of general medical care. These include home visits, vaccinations, ultrasound examinations, video consultations, and more appointments on Wednesday and Friday afternoons. The more criteria the clinics meet, the more money they receive via the flat-rate fee.
“Together with the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, we have taken a first step toward greater patient care: more consultation hours on Friday afternoons, more clinics that make home visits, and better primary care for nursing home residents are just three of the ten points we want to achieve,” explained Stefanie Stoff-Ahnis, deputy chair of the GKV-Spitzenverband. However, it is still unclear how many clinics will now adjust their care offerings.
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