Healthcare industry

Article - 15/10/2019

docdirekt – a smart way to contact a doctor in Baden-Württemberg

You feel unwell, but the family doctor’s practice is closed or it’s impossible to get an appointment at short notice. As part of their docdirekt project, the Baden-Württemberg Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (in German: "Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung Baden-Württemberg (KVBW)) is now offering help for such cases. Everyone signed up to the statutory health insurance scheme will now be able to ring, contact via apps or…

Article - 18/03/2019

EHR and PHR: digital records in the German healthcare system

EHRs, i.e. electronic health records (German: Patientenakte, ePA), are hailed as the key to increasing the quality of care. The Appointment Service and Supply Act (TSVG), adopted on 14th March 2019, requires the German statutory health insurance funds to provide policyholders with electronic health records from 1st January 2021 onwards.

Article - 15/01/2018

Blockchain technology as an opportunity for more transparency and self-determination

In the healthcare sector, blockchain technology is still in the early stages of development, although it has huge potential in this field. It is expected that patients will particularly benefit from the introduction of a decentralised database for managing and sharing health-related information with treating physicians. Statutory health insurance companies become less important as intermediaries. But how exactly does this technology work?

Expert interview - 02/08/2017

Innovative diagnosis and treatment methods – regulation of their reimbursement in the German healthcare sector

The German healthcare cost reimbursement system differentiates between in- and outpatient medical products. In an interview with Caroline Ref and Jasmin Dabrowski from BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg, Michael Weißer, Chief Operating Officer of AiM GmbH in Lörrach, gives interesting insights into the reimbursement of medical care products, in particular with regard to the introduction of new and innovative diagnosis and treatment methods.

Article - 24/05/2017

Ralf Reski: from moss to humans

Prof. Dr. Ralf Reski conducts basic research at the University of Freiburg. But this is not all the well-known plant biotechnologist does. He also wants his ideas to become concrete products. This is why he established Greenovation Biotech GmbH, a company which produces novel drugs in mosses. The company’s first moss-produced drug candidate – Moss-aGal – a recombinant form of human α-galactosidase, is now being tested in a phase I clinical trial.…

The Commission welcomes the adoption of its proposal for two Regulations on medical devices which establish a modernised and more robust EU legislative framework to ensure better protection of public health and patient safety.

Article - 22/02/2017

Review: New European directives will impact the medical technology industry

The new Medical Device Regulation (MDR) and the first In Vitro Diagnostic Devices Regulation (IVDR) are likely to become European law in the second half of 2017, with transitional periods of three and five years, respectively.

Article - 17/05/2016

Medical devices legislation: laborious compromises in Brussels

The revision of the European legislation on medical devices is aimed at making medical devices safer and rebuilding the trust of patients. Rather than implementing the system change that was being planned after the silicone breast implant scandal in 2010, the EU called for open public consultation to prevent such incidents from occurring. As a result, revision of the legislation has been ongoing since autumn 2012.

Press release - 09/12/2015

New financing conditions from High-Tech Gründerfonds

High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) is raising its seed investment to €600k and lowering interest rates by 4%. This is in response to changing requirements in the start-up and venture capital scene, as well as current interest rate trends. The package of measures will be effective from January 1, 2016.

Telemedicine - 19/10/2015

Medical apps – potential helpers for physicians and patients

Can smartphones become health counsellors for patients or diagnostic tools for doctors? The answer is yes, at least technically. However, health apps that comply with valid medical device regulations are still rather rare in Germany. Many health insurance companies are reluctant to pay for the use of these modern tools because the legal framework is inadequate and doctors are not yet fully capable of using them. Nevertheless, the use of such…

Article - 11/02/2013

REGiNA – the health region for regenerative medicine

REGiNA is a users’ centre for regenerative medicine in the area bordered by the cities of Stuttgart and Tübingen and the Neckar-Alb region. It was established with the aim of translating a variety of advanced regenerative methods into broad clinical application. Providing a diverse and broad range of information, REGiNA is focused on making new treatment possibilities and the opportunities created by regenerative medicine known to doctors,…

Press release - 09/10/2012

European Commission proposes measures to tackle 'biopiracy' and facilitate nature-based research

On 4th October 2012 researchers and companies in the EU received a boost today with a new proposal that should provide reliable access to genetic resources from outside the Union. The proposal is designed to protect the rights of countries and of indigenous and local communities that allow their genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge to be used while also giving researchers in Europe improved reliable access to quality samples of…

Press release - 18/07/2012

Single Market for research and innovation can open up

The European Commission has set out on 17 July 2012 concrete steps to be taken by Member States to complete the European Research Area (ERA). The ERA can be understood as an internal market for research and innovation in Europe. The goal is to enable researchers, research institutions and businesses to better move, compete and cooperate across borders.

Article - 09/07/2012

Thirteen years into the Bologna Process

The German Ministry of Education introduced the bachelor’s-master’s system with the goal of improving education and career opportunities as well as increasing the efficiency of academic education and research. Thirteen years after the signing of the Bologna Declaration in 1999, the transition to the bachelor’s-master’s system is far from complete.

Article - 18/06/2012

Medical ethicists: biobanks need harmonization rather than new laws

There are statutory European provisions on biobanks that regulate biobank research in Europe to a certain extent. Christian Lenk, managing director of the Ethics Commission at Ulm University, calls for the harmonization of existing European regulations rather than the creation of new laws.

Article - 14/05/2012

Biogas and sustainability

The German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) has led to a considerable increase in the use of biogas in Germany. However, increasing biogas production must make ecological sense and not generate conflict with the sustainability objectives of environmental conservation schemes. There must therefore be a careful consideration of the overall conditions. An analysis of the ecological impact of the generation and use of biogas in Germany taking into…

Article - 14/11/2011

Who’s for a nice cup of tea?

Wolfgang Neldner is the Managing Director of Esslingen-based Anoxymer GmbH, a company which commercialises teas, herbal mixes and plant extracts for use in the food and cosmetics industries. Here he gives the manufacturer’s viewpoint of how the EU Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation is affecting the food industry.

Article - 21/03/2011

Immunotherapy: the rocky road to clinical application

Hans-Georg Rammensee has one major goal: he wants to contribute to the successful application of immunotherapy in clinical settings and is convinced that this will only be possible once individualised immunotherapies are used. Individualised immunotherapy refers to the induction of a specific immune response against specific tumour-associated antigens. Rammensee has made major progress in this area and is now focused on overcoming the obstacles…

The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) has included roflumilast (Daxas®) as a new treatment option in its COPD management guidelines. A section on the new class, phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitors, describes the efficacy of roflumilast in patients with COPD.