British social security finances german health system
BONN In the next few weeks thirty patients from Great Britain will be treated in German hospitals as part of a pilot project. The costs of the project, which is the initiative of ,,The Trust for promoting German Medicine abroad"will be borne by the British National Health Service. It is intended as a model. Great Britain will be compelled by this to give financial support to the weakened German health system.
The ,,Trust for promoting German Medicine abroad"was founded in 1998 and has one hundred hospitals throughout Germany as members. Its aim is the treatment of patients from abroad in German clinics. In this way foreign markets could be opened for German medicine and the German health system would be strengthened through competing internationally. The Board of Directors includes chairmen and chief executives of the largest hospital groups, as well as members of the German Parliament from the SPD (Social Democrats), FDP (Free Democrats), CDU (Christian Democrats) and from the Green Party.
The treatment of patients from Great Britain is in conformity with a basic legal decision of the European Court of Justice (12 July 2001). This provides that citizens of one EU member state may be treated in the another member state, if they cannot receive treatment within a reasonable time. The costs incurred must be paid by the health insurance system of the home member state. According to official figures 70,000 people in Great Britain must wait from 15 to 18 months for an operation. 1,200,000 patients are on waiting lists.
Within the framework of a similar project, 300 people from Norway have been treated in German hospitals.
Dieter Thomae, Chairman of the ,,Trust for promoting German Medicine abroad"and health spokesman for the Free Democrats (FDP), said that this subsidising of the German health service pointed the way to the future. He approved the ongoing finance of Geran hospitals by treating foreigners - for example from Britain. In an aside, he said that this would strengthen the German health system against that of France, as France was also treating British citizens.
Sources:
From the Urals to Gibraltar - Hospitals should compete for patients from abroad. Der Tagesspiegel 28/5/1998
German Hospitals offer Treatment across Borders. Press Release from German Association of Hospitals 24/1/2001
,,Bridge for Patients"should ameliorate Britains Problems - Doctors' Newspaper 4/2/2002