Austria’s Green Party is seeking a legal guarantee that patients can visit a doctor without paying extra fees. Deputy parliamentary leader Sigrid Maurer announced the plan on Monday, ahead of a session of the National Parliament.
The party’s urgent motion responds to proposals in a paper made public by the Greens. The document, drawn up by the employers’ side of Austria’s public health insurer, the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK), reportedly considers ending reimbursements for visits to private doctors and introducing patient contributions for medical appointments.
Green health spokesperson Ralph Schallmeiner called the idea of charging patients “highly unfair.” He warned that people, especially those on low incomes, might have to think carefully before deciding whether they could afford to see a doctor.
Schallmeiner also said ending reimbursements for private doctors would hurt patients who turn to them because they cannot find an appointment with a doctor covered by public insurance. Many people do not choose private care “for fun,” he said, but because the public system does not offer enough access.
The paper also includes possible higher contributions for part time workers. The Greens want their motion to block that proposal as well.
Schallmeiner said the government would face a test this week and urged Health Minister Korinna Schumann of the Social Democratic Party to make her position clear. The proposals remain ideas in a paper, rather than measures that have been adopted.
“Anyone who goes to the doctor needs help, not a bill in their hand,” Maurer said.
