At their party congress, the German Greens have decided to reject the reimbursement of homeopathic treatments by statutory health insurance funds. The resolution changes the party's previous stance and highlights the lack of scientific evidence for effectiveness beyond the placebo effect. This reimbursement suggests false efficacy and misleads patients.
The delegates at the party congress of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen passed a motion to relieve the community of solidarity from funding such therapies. "The community of solidarity should not cover therapies whose effectiveness beyond the placebo effect is not scientifically proven," it states. Many health funds offer homeopathic remedies as additional benefits to attract customers, although no evidence exists for superior effects.
The party executive submitted a counter-motion allowing continued reimbursement, but it failed to gain a majority. This reverses the party's August 2020 decision, which permitted homeopathy only in self-financed extra tariffs without burdening all contributors.
Internally, discussions arose: One advocate warned against reopening the debate, as homeopathy sales are declining anyway. Another delegate emphasized the Greens' relationship to science. The issue raised concerns ahead of next year's state elections.
Former Health Minister Karl Lauterbach of the SPD had planned to eliminate homeopathy as an insurance benefit. However, in the traffic-light coalition, it did not happen, mainly because the Greens opposed the change.