Current articles on Medical and social law

Bereits bisher waren Krankenhäuser berechtigt, im begrenzten Umfang ambulante Leistungen zu erbringen, beispielsweise als vor- und nachstationäre Leistungen, im Rahmen von psychiatrische oder geriatrische Institutsambulanzen oder als ambulantes Operieren im Krankenhaus.

Mit dem In-Kraft-Treten der Krankenhaustransformationsfonds-Verordnung (KHTFV) zum 18.04.2025 ist eine weitere, wesentliche Etappe auf dem Weg zur Transformation der Krankenhauslandschaft erreicht. Dabei geht es um sehr viel Geld: 50 Mrd. EUR stehen als Fördersumme für die nächsten zehn Jahre im Raum.

Am 4. April 2025 lud die BioRegio STERN Management GmbH gemeinsam mit VOELKER & Partner Rechtsanwälte Wirtschaftsprüfer Steuerberater mbB zu einem interaktiven Seminar nach Stuttgart ein. Rund 30 Teilnehmende aus der Medizintechnikbranche – von Start-ups bis zu etablierten Unternehmen – kamen im Raum Gutbrod in der Friedrichstraße zusammen, um sich umfassend über die Erstattungsfähigkeit von Medizinprodukten und Diagnostika im deutschen Gesundheitssystem zu informieren.

On November 26, 2024, the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG) ruled by a narrow majority that the compulsory medical treatment of people who are under legal care due to an illness or disability can also be carried out outside of hospitals in individual cases in future. The groundbreaking ruling thus breaks with the previous hospital reservation and allows coercive medical measures to be carried out in assisted living facilities or at home. The decision thus marks a significant step towards taking greater account of the rights and needs of vulnerable people.

Outpatient specialist care (ASV) offers the opportunity to overcome the sector boundaries between outpatient and inpatient care. The aim of ASV is to diagnose and treat complex, difficult-to-treat diseases that require special qualifications, interdisciplinary cooperation and special technical equipment.

The doctor's letter is basically used for the targeted exchange of information between the doctors providing treatment or continuing treatment. As a result of the Act to Accelerate Digitalization in the Healthcare System (Digital-Gesetz DigiG), all doctors and facilities participating in SHI-accredited medical care are now obliged to be able to receive electronic doctor's letters (eDoctors' letters) by 30 June 2024 at the latest.

All relevant medical measures are documented in the patient file. According to Section 630g of the German Civil Code (BGB), patients have the right to inspect their medical records. This right is a concrete form of the principle of informational self-determination. However, the right of access is not unlimited, but can be denied by the treating physician in individual cases.

In its ruling dated April 4, 2024 (case no. III ZR 38/23), the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) made a fundamental decision on the German Medical Fee Schedule (GOÄ) and thus on flat-rate medical fees. The highest court has thus ruled that the GOÄ always applies to medical services provided on an outpatient basis.

In principle, all doctors and dentists who participate in contracted (dental) medical care are obliged to participate in the organized emergency service (also: "emergency service" or "on-call service"). The emergency service is organized by the Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KVs) and Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Dentists (KZVs), whose mandate under Section 75 (1b) SGB V also includes the provision of care by statutory health insurance physicians during non-office hours. (Dental) doctors who otherwise do not or no longer participate in SHI-accredited medical care (so-called "pool doctors") can also voluntarily participate in the emergency service.