Germany could shut down hospitals in light of energy crisis: Minister
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The German health sector is treading down a dark path, with many hospitals being at the threat of closing down completely.
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Germany's health sector is struggling under lack of energy
Many hospitals in Germany are up against the ropes, with closures looming on the horizon as rising energy costs and soaring inflation stifle the health sector, German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said on Sunday.
"The hospitals are in a very special situation. If we do not react quickly and really drastically, there will be closures," Lauterbach told ARD broadcaster.
Lauterbach said he would discuss how many forms of assistance should be provided to the country's hospitals with German Finance Minister Christian Lindner on Tuesday. In the meantime, however, Berlin has no plans to set up private funds for hospitals, similar to the one in place for the Bundeswehr, the country's armed forces.
"We cannot create separate special funds for each sphere," Lauterbach stressed.
The German news agency Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) reported on Tuesday that about 7,000 protesters who took to the streets in more than 15 cities around the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state of Germany, asking that the government provide an affordable standard of life and stop providing weaponry to Ukraine.
According to DPA, 2,400 protestors in Schwerin and Neubrandenburg urged for peace talks on Ukraine and the suspension of sanctions against Russia.
In an effort to get ready for a winter without Russian energy supplies, Germany announced on Friday that its gas reserves have been filled up to 95% faster than anticipated.
The biggest economy in Europe was largely reliant on Russian gas and scrambled to increase its supplies before winter after exports from Russia were stopped following the start of the war in Ukraine.
Berlin set a number of objectives in July to ensure that gas stocks would be 95% full by November. Robert Habeck, the Economy Minister, referred to Friday's report as an "important milestone".
Berlin has also implemented policies that permit the use of more coal-based energy and lower energy consumption in public structures.
Additionally, Germany may have to temporarily curtail its electricity exports, including to France. The Financial Times quoted Hendrik Neumann, chief technical officer of Germany's main grid operator Amprion, saying that this could be Germany's "last resort."
For many years, Germany has been considered a key electricity exporter. According to data from the network regulator, last year, it supplied 17,400 GWh more electricity to other EU nations than it imported, but the sanctions on Russia have undermined Europe's biggest economy.
