German Doctors' Union Warns Emergency Care Reform Risks Insurer Control
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Berlin – September 13, 2026 -- Germany's largest doctors' association, the Marburger Bund, has warned lawmakers that a draft reform of emergency medical care could hand health insurers de facto control over which local emergency sites survive, ahead of a public hearing before the Bundestag's Health Committee.
Marburger Bund backs the goal of linking outpatient and inpatient emergency care but flags flaws in the bill
Dr. Susanne Johna, chairwoman of the Marburger Bund, told the committee that better integration of ambulatory and hospital-based emergency structures is needed so patients reach the appropriate care point reliably. She cautioned, however, that the current draft contains provisions that could create new operational problems in practice.