Corona test in legal health insurance doctor is enshrined in law – Coronavirus Vienna

In view of the corona crisis, the turquoise green coalition is planning further changes to the law: the National Council will decide on Covid-19 tests in medical practices starting Wednesday, which will be paid for by health insurers ( at the expense of the federal government). Further changes to the laws of the crown will also be prepared for the plenary.

The law for testing in statutory physicians and health insurance laboratories is introduced by an independent committee proposal, which allows for a National Council resolution this week. Health insurance companies have to pay doctors a fixed fee for this service; patient co-payments are prohibited by law. The federal government reimburses the funds from the COVID-19 crisis management fund. The regulation must apply for the duration of the corona pandemic.

The Medical Chamber supports the corona tests provided for in medical practices, which will be decided by the National Council on Wednesday. Vice President Johannes Steinhart insisted this Tuesday at a press conference on the voluntary nature of doctors, which is also provided by law. Steinhart also emphasized that attention must be paid to hygiene measures and the structural status of practices.

The Vice President attaches particular importance to minimizing the risk of infection for patients and physicians. And he points out that a distinction must be made between urban and rural areas. The structural situation in cities like Vienna could pose a problem for some practices. This is why Steinhart can imagine creating hubs with container construction in metropolitan areas. In the country, on the other hand, it would be possible to set up tents in front of the ordinations. In any case, the vice president advocated regionally different solutions.

The president of the medical council could not calculate precisely how many resident doctors would actually participate in the tests. The president of the Association of general practitioners, Angelika Reitböck, has already voiced her criticism. He fears that even more patients are now avoiding going to the doctor to avoid the risk of infection. And there is also a possible risk to the doctor himself.

With the same application, part of the purchase of protective equipment is also reorganized. The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) is now responsible for independent health and social service providers (from doctors to nurses and social workers), provided that the recruitment is not carried out by a local authority. Here, too, the federal government bears the costs. The assessment of specific needs and also the distribution to individual service providers should be organized by the respective professional and interest groups.

In addition to this request, there are also other changes to the Law on Measures Epidemic, Tuberculosis and COVID-19 after Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens) again submitted his revised draft to a brief evaluation the previous week and they were received again. several thousand statements.

Among other things, the period of validity of the regulations will be further restricted. Unlimited lockout is excluded (and compliance with family rights and obligations was added as an exception), and relevant ordinances automatically expire after ten days. The validity of the measures law will not extend until the end of 2021, but only until June 30. A six-month extension is possible by ordinance if the epidemiological situation makes it necessary.

For contact tracing, it is stipulated that health authorities must delete the data within 28 days. It is precisely regulated what data must be disclosed when entering from risk areas and that flights in bifurcation through these areas are also taken into account.

The specifications for prevention concepts are now based on the type of event. Professional secrets are protected by clarification, controls can be carried out on disease-specific documents. The division of responsibilities between the Ministry of Health and the state and district authorities is also precisely defined.

The FPÖ criticized the coalition’s approach. ÖVP and Greens tried to take experts and parliamentarians by surprise, he criticized in a transmission to the club’s boss, Herbert Kickl. The laws are plagued with an absolutely disproportionate interference in the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens. Kickl also suspected that the SPÖ might have given in to the leadership of the coalition, which would no longer allow the FPÖ to slow down legislative proposals in the Federal Council.