2024-09-13 20:19:36
In certain cases, you don’t always have to go to the doctor’s office to get a sick note. The finance minister has questioned the regulation – doctors disagree.
The Association of General Practitioners has criticized Finance Minister Christian Lindner’s (FDP) advocacy for an end to telephone sick notes. The statements cannot be understood, said Chairman Markus Beier.
The introduction of the regulation was an absolutely correct and sensible decision from a medical and health care policy perspective. Allegations that people are getting away with it cannot be confirmed from day-to-day work.
At an event in Berlin on Thursday, Lindner said: “In future, you will have to go to the doctor again to report sick and you won’t be able to do it over the phone.” He didn’t want to accuse anyone of taking advantage of the regulation. But unfortunately there was “a correlation between the annual sick leave in Germany and the introduction of the measure, which was intended as a good way to reduce bureaucracy.” You can read more about it here.
Association head Beier, on the other hand, warned of the threat to a regulation “that relieves the burden on our practices and our patients, especially in the months of extreme infections, and is one of the few political measures that is currently really reducing bureaucracy.” It is known that the increased number of sick notes can be attributed in large part to the electronic transmission of the certificate of incapacity for work. This means that sick notes are now also being recorded that would never have reached the health insurance companies before.
The option of obtaining a sick note by telephone was introduced during the Corona pandemic. In December 2023, the Federal Joint Committee of doctors, health insurance companies and clinics decided on a permanent regulation. Patients can then obtain a sick note by telephone if they are known to the practice and do not have severe symptoms. As part of its growth initiative for the economy, the federal government has agreed to review the measure due to the increased level of sick leave.