Overview
- Freelance midwives at Helios Klinikum Erfurt report three resignations, and in Weimar one midwife resigned as two others delayed returning from parental leave.
- A nationwide reimbursement scheme for freelance hospital midwives took effect on November 1 after arbitration between insurers and midwife associations.
- The contract boosts payment for exclusive one-to-one births but reduces pay when several women are supervised, which midwives say will cut income and increase paperwork.
- The Deutscher Hebammenverband projects at least 20% lower earnings, while AOK Plus says there will be no general income losses as insurer groups emphasize the shift to one-to-one care.
- A Berlin-Brandenburg social court rejected an emergency bid to halt the rules, and a mandated working group will revisit remuneration once representative billing data are available.