Update from Berlin #19 | Health | Committees | Courts

Welcome to our newest episode of ‘Update from Berlin’. The Bundestag is in session this week, so we’re back to let you know what’s going on in political Berlin.

This week will be a busy one for Health Minister Lauterbach. First he’s introducing new bills and there are also debates on measures introduced by opposition parties.

One of the bills he is introducing is the “Digital Law”. Frankly it’s not really the best of names, but I guess naming laws isn’t the main job of the Health Ministry, is it? In any case the act aims to increase use of the electronic patient file and mandatory use of the electric prescription. Further development of other electronic or digital tools in health care is also part of this bill – for example the use of video calls for primary care doctors should be increased.

Lauterbach is also introducing the “Health Data Act” which aims to legislate the use of health related data and make sharing of certain data by health insurance providers with certain actors easier.

The opposition Left Party is introducing a measure that calls for “use of the electronic patient file for the good of the insured”.

Another area that’s front of mind for Germany’s parliamentarians is the economy. Here the government is hoping to see changes to the energy industry law pass the Bundestag and parliament will also debate a measure by the CDU/CSU group that wants to make the net-zero industry act a catalyst for Germany’s industry. Something else the CDU/CSU is pushing for is to make the Bundestag’s vote on the digital Euro binding.

In committees, we’re seeing numerous debates:

The Health Committee is having public hearings including one on the cannabis law, the Finance Committee will have hearings on various measures incl. corporate taxation and energy storage, and the Climate and Energy Committee as well as the Construction Committee will debate a law on heat planning. Obviously there are many more hearings, including in the Traffic, Environment, and the Economics Committee.

Looking towards Brussels, the European Parliament is in session this week. It’s looking at the energy union, cars and trucks, as well as data. There are also various ministerial meetings this week. For example the ministers for space will meet. The Euro group is also meeting, as is the ECOFIN Council.

On the judicial front the German Federal Administrative Court will hold oral arguments in a case where a city purchased part of a larger property and the ECJ will issue its decision on how much access to information concerning repairs and service of a vehicle needs to be provided under EU regulations.

That’s it for this week. As always, leave a like, and / or a comment and share this video with your friends and colleagues!