Escalating home care fees persist - Rising payments persist in home care sector
In a recent analysis conducted by the Association of Substitute Health Insurance Funds (vdek), it has been revealed that the costs of nursing home care in Germany can significantly differ across various states. The analysis, which included data from health insurance funds such as the Techniker Krankenkasse, the Barmer, and the DAK-Gesundheit, did not provide specific figures for states like Saarland, Bremen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saxony-Anhalt, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
However, it is generally understood that out-of-pocket costs for nursing home care are influenced by several factors, including local care home pricing and availability, state-level social welfare top-ups, and cost of living in each region. Western states, such as North Rhine-Westphalia and Bremen, tend to have higher care costs compared to eastern states like Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, due to economic differences and care demand. Saarland's costs might fall somewhere in the middle.
The extent of coverage from Germany's mandatory long-term care insurance (Pflegeversicherung) also plays a role in determining out-of-pocket expenses, as it standardises a portion of the benefits nationwide. The analysis did reveal that the lowest monthly co-payment nationwide is in Saxony-Anhalt, at 2,595 euros, while the most expensive in the first year, as of July 1, is in Bremen, with an average of 3,449 euros per month.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the average monthly co-payment for nursing home care is 2,752 euros, and in North Rhine-Westphalia, it is 3,427 euros. Unfortunately, no information was provided about co-payments in Saarbrücken or Berlin.
The average monthly out-of-pocket payments for nursing home care in Saarland have increased to 3,403 euros as of July 1, 2023, representing a 37% rise in out-of-pocket payments in the last three years. This increase equates to a monthly increase of 237 euros compared to the same period last year. If the state government fulfilled its obligations, it could reduce monthly stationary nursing care costs in Saarland by around 730 euros.
Eugen Brysch, chairman of the German Foundation for Patient Protection, has stated that nursing home residents in Saarland are experiencing a cost avalanche. This highlights the importance of consulting regional or federal German social care reports from agencies such as the Statistisches Bundesamt (Federal Statistical Office of Germany), state government or health ministry publications, and long-term care insurance providers’ resources for detailed, up-to-date comparative figures regarding out-of-pocket nursing home costs by state.
- The community policy analysis by the Association of Substitute Health Insurance Funds (vdek) sheds light on varying nursing home costs across German states.
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