Overview

• The federal government granted states more time to assign hospitals to performance groups, extending key deadlines toward a phased roll-out through 2029.
• Rural clinics won broader exemptions from minimum staffing and equipment requirements to ease the transition in underserved areas.
• An immediate €4 billion from the infrastructure special fund will cover inflation-driven transformation costs from 2022 and 2023.
• The federal budget will assume the statutory health insurers’ share of the transformation fund to prevent additional charges for policyholders.
• Health Minister Nina Warken affirmed that core quality standards and specialist-unit mandates will remain intact despite the concessions.