Lower Saxony Medical Association calls for a stop to the bureaucratic clinic atlas!

Lower Saxony Medical Association calls for a stop to the bureaucratic clinic atlas!

The Federal Ministry of Health is currently examining the discontinuation of the controversial Federal Hospital Atlas, and the Lower Saxony Medical Association (ÄKN) supports these considerations as a step towards reducing bureaucracy. These developments come at a time when the Clinic Atlas, originally launched in spring 2024 under the then Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, is already met with massive criticism. Dr. med. Martina Wenker, President of the ÄKN, is clearly skeptical about the usefulness of the Atlas, which she describes as an “expensive slow seller with no use at all”. According to Wenker, the additional bureaucratic requirements lead to an unnecessary burden on hospitals, especially since much of the data is already contained in other mandatory reports. The Medical Association represents around 47,000 doctors in Lower Saxony and has assessed the review of the clinic atlas, which is currently underway, as positive. ÄKN reports that…

The Clinic Atlas, launched about a month ago, was intended to help patients choose the right clinic for their treatments. But the feedback was anything but positive; many users felt overwhelmed by the amount of information. Tino Sorge from the CDU/CSU even described the atlas as a “false start” and demanded an apology from the health minister, while Lauterbach recently promised an update. This update allows patients to compare treatment experiences across 20 key procedure complexes - a clear simplification compared to the previous 23,000 individual procedure types presented on the platform. Seven areas such as heart, lungs and cancer are now prominently placed on the portal's homepage. Depending on the clinic, this selection should cover up to 70 percent of patients. BR reports that…

Focus on bureaucracy and hospital reform

Despite the adjustments, criticism of the first version of the clinical atlas remains. The German Foundation for Patient Protection rated the update as a failure and complained that it did not offer sufficiently helpful support for patients. Lauterbach admitted that the original version was too complex for laypeople, but rejected the ongoing allegations overall. The Bavarian state government is also sharply criticizing the planned hospital reform, which is due to come into force in 2027. Health Minister Judith Gerlach (CSU) warns that the requirements for child and adolescent medicine in particular could lead to bottlenecks. There are also concerns about the availability of specialists who are supposed to meet the new requirements. Statutory health insurance companies expect additional annual costs of five billion euros as a result of the reform. ÄKN makes it clear that…

In summary, it can be said that the Federal Hospital Atlas can be viewed as a clear example of the challenges in the German healthcare system. With the ongoing discussion about reducing bureaucracy and necessary reforms, the role of the clinical atlas will probably be questioned even more intensively in the future. The coming weeks could be decisive as to whether the Atlas is actually discontinued or continued in another form.