Overview
- The Federal Office for Social Security (BAS) has formally criticized the practice of stopping Krankengeld solely because a doctor did not mark a certificate as an “end” notice, and its 2025 checks led one insurer to repay about €263,000 for more than 550 cases.
- Social courts continue to back non‑payment when there is a verifiable gap in medical attestations, as shown by a Landessozialgericht ruling that denied 27 days of Krankengeld where no timely follow‑up AU was documented.
- A statutory change in the GKV contribution‑stabilization law (§47 Abs. 2a SGB V) takes effect on 1 January 2027 and will reduce Krankengeld to 60 percent of prior net pay (67 percent if an eligible child is counted) from the day after employment ends during an ongoing AU.
- Affected people should immediately check their Krankengeld and pension Bescheide, file timely Widerspruchs within one month if needed, and consider a §44 SGB X Überprüfungsantrag for older final decisions because retroactive recovery is limited to defined windows.
- The mix of supervisory corrections, court‑upheld gaps and the January law means some sick people face clear monthly shortfalls (example cases show several hundred euros) and likely more appeals, while insurers must correct formal errors but can still lawfully pause payments when medical continuity is missing.