The latest amendment to the psychotherapy reform came into force around two weeks ago and the headlines have already begun piling up. The measures that have been brought in are not producing the desired improvement in the situation for patients on statutory health insurance. Patients are also continuing to experience long waiting times for therapy. Read an overview and what the changes mean for INSITE here.
What changes came into force on 1 April and why?
Starting from 1 April 2018, it is a legal requirement for patients in Germany to attend a mental health consultation lasting at least 50 minutes before they can start therapy. Every psychotherapist who is licensed to provide care under the statutory health insurance scheme has to offer this type of consultation. The aim is to use this consultation to make a reliable diagnosis as to whether or not there are medical grounds for psychotherapy. If out-patient therapy is recommended, this will be attested through a form given to the patient.
Where there are medical grounds, the therapist can start the process of treating the patient during the consultation itself – provided he or she has available capacity. If they do not, it is up to the patient themself to find a therapist with available capacity to continue their treatment.
Consequences for patients
What this all means is that anyone who wants to start out-patient therapy has to first attend a consultation. Appointments for mental health consultations can be made via the service centre of the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (Kassenärztliche Vereinigung) in the region where the patient lives. The service centre must provide an appointment within one week and the appointment must be for no later than four weeks' time.
Getting one of these appointments absolutely does not mean that the therapist has available capacity. It is highly likely that the patient will need to contact a second therapist. The reason being that frequently the therapist who takes on the mandatory consultation will not have any capacity beyond that.
Long waiting lists not going anywhere
At this point, there is no improvement in the situation compared to how it was before the reform. In fact, the opposite is true as lots of treatment facilities now have to keep additional capacities free for these consultations which they are required to offer.
According to a survey by the Federal Chamber of Psychotherapists (Bundespsychotherapetenkammer), the average waiting time for treatment with a statutory health insurance therapist in Germany is 20 weeks.1
This represents only a slight improvement in waiting times since 2011 (a decrease from 23.4 weeks to 19.9 weeks between initial enquiry and start of treatment).
Additional stress
The very act of looking for a therapist with availability is often very demanding and very time-consuming. For many patients, this only adds to their stress over longer waiting times and the research itself.
This is an unreasonable situation for them to be in. German Health Minister, Jens Spahn, is already calling for reform to demand planning.2
What support can INSITE still offer?
INSITE is consulting extensively with our clients' employees on the new process and new requirements. This includes providing contact details for the mandatory mental health consultation. The greatest support we can provide, however, remains our expert Find a Therapist service which tracks down qualified therapists who have available capacities quickly. As a result, we can continue to cut waiting times dramatically.
The support we provide takes the strain off our clients' employees so that they can continue focusing on themselves and their health.
Got questions? We're here to help on
Tel.: +49 (69) 90 555 29-0 or at office@insite.de
Sources:
(1) www.tagesschau.de/inland/psychotherapeuten-kassenpatienten-101.html
(2) www.tagesschau.de/inland/spahn-psychotherapie-101.html
www.spiegel.de/gesundheit/psychologie/psychotherapie-reform-das-warten-hat-kein-ende-a-1202312.html
