Representatives of the federal, state and local governments signed the so-called financial equalization pact on Tuesday afternoon. This also provides additional resources linked to reforms. Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) was satisfied. No questions have been answered.
Financial equalization is also linked to healthcare reform; both will be adopted by the Council of Ministers on Wednesday and submitted to the National Council on the same day. The decision in parliament is then scheduled for December. The details of the agreement have been negotiated in recent days.
Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) and Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) signed for the federal government in the Federal Chancellery in Vienna, and state governors Thomas Stelzer and Markus Wallner (both ÖVP) and Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) signed for the federal government. states.
Additional amounts for states and municipalities
The amounts for the financial equalization had already been agreed at the beginning of October. Although the distribution key for tax revenues between the federal government, states and municipalities (68 to 20 to 12 percent) remains the same, contrary to the latter’s demands, both local governments receive significant additional amounts. In concrete terms, 2.4 billion euros in fresh money must be made available annually. Together with payments to social security and healthcare reform, the total amounts to 3.4 billion euros. Included is a ‘future fund’ of 1.1 billion euros, which is intended to provide money for childcare, among other things.
Combined with reforms – but without sanctions
To this end, states are expected to meet certain target agreements for reforms (two-thirds of the additional resources made available by the federal government are linked to this), but without the threat of sanctions if they do not comply. The money should flow not only to healthcare and care, but also to expanding childcare and climate protection measures. Communities had recently found themselves at a disadvantage when it came to distributing the new money.
All this is related to the healthcare reform that Health Minister Rauch is pursuing and which aims to strengthen healthcare in the private sector, structural reforms in hospitals, accelerated digitalization and innovations in health promotion, vaccination, medication supply and, last but not least, healthcare (with an increase in the healthcare fund from 455 million euros to 1.2 billion euros per year).
Medical association protests against loss of power
The Medical Association in particular objects to the reform, because it fears that it will limit its power in concluding general health insurance contracts, the doctor staffing plan and the approval of outpatient clinics. The professional representation also protests against the planned switch from prescribing medications to prescribing active substances. The week before, Rauch had at least one meeting with Johannes Steinhart, president of the medical association. However, the House has already released ten million euros for a campaign against the reform.
Source: Krone
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