Währing gets a new statutory health insurance practice: Christian Gatterer helps immediately!

Währing gets a new statutory health insurance practice: Christian Gatterer helps immediately!

On July 1st, Christian Gatterer, an experienced pulmonary specialist, opened his new statutory health insurance practice for general medicine at Wallrißstraße 2 in Währing. This decision comes at exactly the right time, as the district's citizens often have difficulty getting short-term appointments with general practitioners or specialists with a health insurance contract. According to meinkreis.at, there are currently only 22 active insurance positions for general medicine in Währing, with two being vacant and five other positions being filled but not currently active.

The new practice will be open from Monday to Friday and Währinger patients can look forward to various examinations, including annual health check-ups. Opening hours are Monday and Wednesday 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Appointments can be easily booked by telephone or online using a ticket system.

A step towards improving care

Christian Gatterer opened the practice to counteract the undersupply in the district. “I conducted ten rounds of negotiations with the health insurance company over a period of six months to make this possible,” explains Gatterer. According to experts, the shortage of statutory health insurance physicians is attributed to high investment costs and collective bargaining challenges. “It is clear that we need both statutory health insurance doctors and elective doctors to ensure medical care in the district,” Gatterer further emphasizes and supports the petition for more statutory health insurance doctors started by the SPÖ Währing. This is in line with the medical association's demands for more statutory health insurance positions, fewer bureaucratic hurdles and fair conditions for doctors.

In Austria, every person, regardless of age, income or place of residence, has the right to medical treatment, a principle established by the Österreichische Gesundheitskasse (ÖGK). There are currently 3,988 general medicine insurance offices throughout Austria, 97.6 percent of which are occupied. The average retirement age of general practitioners is 64.2 years, which means that half of the doctors retire every decade. An increased focus on securing cash register positions is therefore urgently needed.

The future of general medicine

The specialist knows that general practitioners treat an average of 4,818 cases per year and make around 576 home visits annually. The most common diagnoses are high blood pressure, lipid metabolism disorders, as well as musculoskeletal system complaints and respiratory diseases. This shows how great the need for effective medical care is in the region.

The SPÖ Währing is currently in talks with the ÖGK about the allocation of new health insurance offices and is optimistic that medical care in the district can be significantly improved through the commitment of new practices such as that of Gatterer.