Effects of the new fixed-subsidy system for prosthetic dental care in Germany: results of descriptive research

OBJECTIVE: To detail how provision of prosthetic treatments altered in Germany following changes in legislation on 1 January 2005, enacted as part of the health system modernisation law (GMG). This legislation directs health insurance companies to fix subsidies on dental prostheses based on diagnostic findings. The goal of the reform is to ensure that insured persons can select any medically recognised form of prosthetic treatment without losing their right to a health insurance subsidy. AIM: To show subsequent effects on provision of prosthetic treatments. METHOD: The four largest substitute health insurance funds each collected the billing data from 300 medical and costs projections and/or from the submitted bills in June 2005, allowing access and analysis of a randomised sample (n = 1,200), which in turn made usable assertions possible. RESULTS: Under the fixed-subsidy system the co-payment from the insured person has risen as soon as the area of Standard Prosthetic Care is left and dental prostheses treatment is provided from the categories care of a similar or different kind. The costs of dental prostheses in the new fixed-subsidy system are composed of approx. 39% dentists' fee and 61% dental materials. Only a small proportion of insured persons capitalise on these changes; in fact only 1.2% of the subsidy is for surgically implanted prostheses in the new fixed-subsidy system. CONCLUSIONS: The current fixed-subsidy system results in substantially higher co-payments for the insured, as soon as Standard Prosthetic Care is left and care of a similar or different kind is provided. This raises the question as to whether the marginalisation of contractual care to fund the additional costs resulting from surgically implanted prostheses was necessary.