Large health insurance companies in Saxony are opposing calls for the abolition of telephone sick notes. This is shown by feedback from five health insurance companies at the request of Deutsche Presse-Agentur.
The background to this is the discussion about the sickness rate in Germany. Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) had suggested that the possibility of telephone sick notes should be put to the test.
Insurers see advantages of telephone sick notes
The Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) expressly defends the procedure. "As the sick note by telephone is limited to five calendar days and may only be issued if the sick person is known to the practice and only has mild symptoms, it is a sensible alternative to a visit to the practice," explained Alexander Krauß, head of the TK regional office in Saxony.
DAK-Gesundheit also considers the regulation to be "fundamentally sensible", especially to relieve the burden on practices during waves of infection. A statistical evaluation of whether sick notes were issued by telephone or in person is not possible. The high sickness rate in recent years can rather be explained by "the statistical effect of electronic sick note recording since 2022" as well as by strong waves of infection.
