Collective bargaining

Burgenland’s statutory health insurance physicians demand more money

Long waiting times in practices have long since become the norm. Better rates would attract more doctors to the country.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

Burgenland's panel doctors are the lowest paid in the whole of Austria. Collective bargaining with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund is proving difficult.

While the province is pursuing its own path with its offensive strategy in health care in order to provide people with the best health care close to their homes and security of supply, the health care system in the private practice sector is seriously ailing. The search for panel doctors has been a huge challenge for years. For the Austrian Medical Association, it is clear that the reason for this is the poorest tariff for panel doctors in the whole of Austria. The tariff negotiations with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) announced for the fall have now come to a standstill - making the system of panel doctors in Burgenland more attractive, including higher fees, is now a distant prospect.

Negotiations with ÖGK are dragging on
A list of demands for the fee negotiations was sent to ÖGK back in June, but there has not yet been a reply, the Medical Association emphasizes. Time is pressing, as the current contract with ÖGK expires at the end of the year. The demand for the negotiations remains the same: Burgenland's panel doctors must receive the same remuneration as doctors in the rest of Austria.

Recently, there has been more interest in health insurance positions again
On the other hand, there is cautiously positive news with regard to the vacancies for doctors' surgeries: Even though the list of unfilled health insurance fund positions is long, there has recently been an increase in interested parties and it can therefore be assumed that one or two positions can still be filled, according to the Medical Association.