Overview
- Nina Warken announced a formal assessment of the telephone sick-note rules to examine potential misuse and practical fixes, with no change decided.
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz reiterated that employees average 14.5 sick days and argued that easy phone attestations contribute to high absenteeism, noting one- to two-day notes were not included in that figure.
- KBV chief Andreas Gassen urged ending phone certifications, saying doctors cannot reliably assess patients by call and citing roughly 27 million short contacts annually that burden practices.
- The ability to obtain a sick note by phone began in 2021 to curb COVID-19 transmission and was later established permanently by then–health minister Karl Lauterbach.
- Lauterbach and opposition figures warned that abolishing the measure would overcrowd practices and sidestep causes like workload and staffing, as Merz signaled talks with the SPD.