Table of Contents 
4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
4 Healthcare expenditure
6 HEALTHCARE EXPENDITURE
6 Germany has a higher than OECD average healthcare spend per capita, but spends less of its
total healthcare outlay on pharmaceuticals
9 HEALTH INSURANCE AND HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
9 The statutory health insurance system dominates healthcare provision in Germany
12 Germany has implemented a range of healthcare reforms
12 Private health insurance consists of comprehensive and supplementary schemes
14 PRIMARY AND HOSPITAL CARE
14 Health system infrastructure in Germany
14 Patients are free to choose their doctor but can enter into a gatekeeping contract
14 Medical practice fee repealed
15 Diagnosis-related groups are used for reimbursement of inpatient care
15 Initiatives introduced to better integrate treatment of chronic conditions
17 BIBLIOGRAPHY

List of Figures 
6 Figure 1: Germany – healthcare expenditure indicators compared to Australia, Japan, the BRIC
nations, North American nations, and other key EU markets, 2010
9 Figure 2: Germany – advantages versus disadvantages of public versus private healthcare in
Germany
10 Figure 3: Germany – overview of statutory health insurance key regulatory bodies

List of Tables
7 Table 1: Germany – healthcare expenditure indicators, 2008–10
14 Table 2: Germany – hospital bed and healthcare worker density (per 1,000 population),
2003–10