Berlin – November 06, 2026 -- Germany's Innovation Fund has paid out more than €2 billion since 2016, yet only 24% of its completed new-care-model projects received a decision to examine continuation in routine care, according to AOK-Bundesverband. The statutory health insurer presented its proposals at a congress marking the fund's tenth anniversary, hosted by the Innovation Committee at the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA).
Half of 146 completed care-model projects received no recommendation
The fund has supported more than 850 projects. Of these, 270 fall under new care models and 591 under health services research. Half of the 146 completed new-care-model projects received no recommendation for further use.
Dr. Sabine Richard, AOK-Bundesverband's managing director for care, said the fund has delivered sound scientific findings but has not yet worked as a real innovation engine for routine care. She attributed the failure to transfer results mainly to organizational, economic and, above all, legal hurdles, a problem she said has existed since the first funding wave.
Annual funding was halved to €100 million and could fall to €75 million
The Beitragsstabilisierungsgesetz (BStabG) permanently halved annual funding to €100 million. The recently presented draft of the Hilfsmittelmodernisierungs- und Bürokratierückbaugesetz (HiB) would cut it further, to €75 million. Richard said the instrument faces growing pressure to justify itself, especially with public finances tight.
AOK rejects new transfer bureaucracy and mandatory continuation by insurers
AOK opposes building new bureaucratic structures to push projects into routine care. That includes any obligation for participating health insurers to continue successfully tested approaches. Richard said the proposed downstream innovation-transfer architecture still leaves open questions on composition and financing.
AOK wants transfer planned from the start instead. It proposes making transfer strategies a separate work package with clear involvement of health insurers, and weighing that focus more heavily when applications are selected. Richard called for more realism and goal orientation in projects.
AOK proposes RegioSV contracts with a 70% threshold for extension to all insurers
AOK-Bundesverband also wants better legal conditions for moving projects into regional routine care. Richard cited coordination problems within consortia, partners not fully convinced of implementation, limited insurer involvement, economic hurdles to making models permanent, and missing legal bases for structurally innovative elements.
The proposal would create a new, standalone legal basis for cooperation among health insurers, long-term care insurers, municipalities and care providers. These regional, sector-independent care contracts (RegioSV) would differ from selective contracts under Section 140a of Book V of the Social Code (SGB V), which are competition-oriented. RegioSV contracts would rest on a right of accession and an extension power, giving all insured people access.
Once 70% of insured people are covered, the care offering could be extended to all insurers and become part of routine care. AOK says this would remove the split between rigid routine care and selective add-ons.