Increased expenses report unveiled - Public outcry exposes bureaucratic misconception within the GKV-SV system
In the realm of healthcare, two prominent organisations – the GKV-Spitzenverband (GKV-SV) and "We Supply Germany" (WvD) – are advocating for a more streamlined approach to aid supply.
The GKV-SV, focusing on reducing bureaucracy in aid supply and limiting additional justification requirements for additional cost agreements, aims to streamline processes for aid provision, ensuring effective patient access while managing costs. According to their current stance, they promote less bureaucratic complexity in approving aids and devices to avoid unnecessary delays and administrative burdens, as part of broader efforts to maintain a sustainable healthcare system.
Negotiating nationwide rebate contracts and reference pricing, the GKV-SV inherently limits the need for extra justifications on cost unless clear additional benefits or evidence support price surcharges. This approach reflects their mechanism to control expenditures while encouraging innovation under manageable administrative conditions.
In the context of digital therapeutics and similar innovative aids, initial pricing can be established by manufacturers for one year after listing, but thereafter negotiations with GKV-SV typically require demonstrated value, keeping scrutiny on costs and benefits balanced with streamlined access.
On the other hand, "We Supply Germany" (WvD), an alliance advocating for a quality-assured, locally accessible, and individual supply of medical aids, has been advocating for a reduction in bureaucracy in the provision of aids for years. They propose an administrative framework contract and call for bureaucracy-free, effective, and uniform administrative, billing, and documentation processes.
The central results of the WvD industry survey 2025 can be found at this link.
The board of "We supply Germany" (WvD) includes notable figures such as Norbert Bertram, Alexander Bolsinger, Dr. Christian Gentner, Stephanie Prenzer, Alf Reuter, Jens Sellhorn, Kirsten Abel (General Secretary), and Patrick Grunau (General Secretary). Kirsten Abel and Patrick Grunau serve as the General Secretaries of the organisation.
The headquarters of "We supply Germany" (WvD) is located at Lützowstraße 102-104, 10785 Berlin. For more information, visit their official website at www.wirversorgendeutschland.de. For contact, you can reach them at Tel. +49 (0)30 33 93 35 63 or email at [email protected].
Patrick Grunau's contact information is Mobile: +49 (0)160 8 85 40 27, Email: [email protected]. Kirsten Abel's contact information is Mobile: +49 (0)171 5 60 81 25, Email: [email protected].
A legal opinion by Prof. Dr. Helge Sodan in 2022 stated that the GKV-SV's introduction of additional justification requirements for additional cost agreements and expansion of audit bureaucracy constitutes an unjustified interference with the private autonomy of insured persons.
Despite this, the GKV-Spitzenverband (GKV-SV) continues its practice of requiring additional justification for additional cost agreements in aid supplies. Around 80% of aid supplies have been made without additional costs for years, including in the year 2024. According to the current WvD industry survey, almost three quarters of healthcare facilities spend over 30% of their operating time on bureaucratic requirements.
The freedom to choose medical aids that go beyond the medically necessary is a right for individuals, and the costs for these additional advantages are borne by the insured person, not the solidarity community. Additional costs for aid supplies in healthcare facilities are almost always below 5% of the total additional costs.
In summary, both organisations are working towards reducing bureaucratic hurdles in the provision of aids to improve patient access, while maintaining strict but pragmatic justification requirements for additional costs tied to aid agreements, focusing on evidence of added benefit. Their market approach emphasises cost-efficiency and operational excellence.
- The GKV-SV, working in the realm of science (specifically healthcare), prioritizes streamlining processes for aid provision to ensure effective patient access and manage costs, while advocating for less bureaucratic complexity in approving aids and devices.
- Coordinating policy-and-legislation, the GKV-SV negotiates nationwide rebate contracts and reference pricing to limit additional justifications on cost, reflecting their mechanism to control expenditures while encouraging innovation.
- "We Supply Germany" (WvD), active in health-and-wellness and politics, advocates for a reduction in bureaucracy in the provision of medical-conditions aids, proposing an administrative framework contract and calling for effective, bureaucracy-free administrative processes.
