Medical association proposal:

100 euros for treatment of tick bites in hospital

In view of overcrowded hospitals, the Austrian Medical Association appeals to patients to take responsibility for themselves.

(Bild: Pressefoto Scharinger © Daniel Scharinger)

The Medical Association of Upper Austria wants to "steer" sick people through the healthcare system and thus relieve the pressure on overcrowded hospitals. If the number of cash points for GPs and the like is sufficiently expanded, patients should also be asked to pay when they come to hospital with aches and pains.

Try home remedies first. If it doesn't get better, call the health hotline 1450. Then go to your family doctor, if necessary to a specialist. And only go to the hospital outpatient clinic if it's really urgent - this is the approach advocated once again by the Upper Austrian Medical Association. The aim is to relieve the pressure on full hospitals.

Healthcare route not asphalted throughout
Medical Association President Peter Niedermoser compares the route through the healthcare system to a road "that is currently not asphalted throughout and is repeatedly interrupted by gravel passages." An example of the bumps in the road in some places: As reported, there is currently no public dermatologist or GP in Wels who is still accepting new patients. In addition, there are currently almost 50 vacancies in Upper Austria, 39 of which are for general practitioners.

If care is regulated, I believe it is obligatory for patients to follow this path. Those who do not follow this path consistently must contribute financially to the system.

Peter Niedermoser, Präsident der Ärztekammer OÖ

Bild: Ärztekammer OÖ

Patients should bear the full costs
Niedermoser believes that the health insurance fund is responsible for the expansion of SHI-accredited doctor positions. "If care is regulated, I believe it is mandatory for patients. Those who do not follow this path consistently must contribute financially to the system," says Niedermoser.

Harald Mayer, chairman of the curia of employed doctors, proposes that patients should pay the full costs if they come to the hospital outpatient clinic instead of their GP for minor treatments. For example, a tick bite: "That will cost 100 to 200 euros," says Mayer.

Austria already had an outpatient fee to relieve overcrowded hospitals. After two years, it was repealed by the Constitutional Court in 2003 for formal reasons.