Frankfurt/Offenbach (dpa/lhe) - Hesse's clinics fear enormous additional costs due to rising energy prices. Savings are hardly possible, said Steffen Gramminger, Director of the Hessian Hospital Society, on the occasion of the Hessian Hospital Day of the German Press Agency. "The energy crisis will accelerate hospital deaths if there is no financial support from politicians."
According to a survey by the German Hospital Institute, energy costs in German hospitals have risen by an average of 60 percent this year. According to estimates by the German Hospital Society, a medium-sized house will have to pay over six million euros more for gas and electricity in 2023 than in 2021.
One reason, from the point of view of the Hessian Hospital Society, is that clinic buildings are often old and energy efficiency is not very high. "Many buildings are not state-of-the-art, there was and is no money for investments in renewable energies and modern building materials. A special support program financed by the federal and state governments should urgently be set up here," Gramminger demanded.
Social Affairs Minister Kai Klose (Greens) points out that since he took office, investment funds have increased steadily: from 168 million in 2018 to 300 million in 2022. "These funds can also be used for measures to convert the energy supply."
