Apply for care aids
If you are cared for at home by relatives, acquaintances or a nursing service, you are entitled to care aids. These are intended to facilitate home care, help alleviate your complaints or enable you to lead a more independent life. No medical prescription is required for care aids, but a recognized degree of care and an application to your nursing care fund. Your long-term care insurance fund is affiliated to your statutory health insurance fund. So you can use the same contact details.
Care aids such as disposable gloves, disinfectants or absorbent bed inserts are needed daily and can only be used once. For such products, your care insurance pays a lump sum of up to EUR 40.00 per month.
Reusable technical care aids such as care beds, shower trolleys or home emergency call systems are normally provided by your care insurance fund on loan and free of charge. For new purchases, you pay a contribution of 10 percent, up to a maximum of EUR 25.00.
In practice, you often do not have to submit the initial application for care aids yourself. The medical service, which prepares an expert opinion on your need for care, usually also informs your nursing care fund whether and which care aids are needed. If you agree, this is also considered a request.
Furthermore, nurses can make concrete recommendations for the provision of aids and care aids in the context of the provision of care in kind, home nursing, out-of-hospital intensive care and counselling missions in the home of the person in need of care. These recommendations shall also be considered as an application. Many mail order companies and medical supply stores specializing in care aids also take over the application for you.
If you make the application yourself or an authorized person, indicate in this person which care aids you need monthly. Subsequent changes are possible with regard to the type and quantity of products. As a rule, you only have to apply for reimbursement once. However, some care insurance companies only approve care aids for a limited period of time, for example for 1 year.
You can find out which products are considered care aids and are therefore eligible for reimbursement or loan in the list of care aids of the GKV-Spitzenverband, the central representation of interests of the statutory health and nursing insurance funds in Germany.
Process flow
Unless the medical service, a nurse, a medical supply store, a specialist dealer or an expert submits the application for care aids for you, you will receive the application form for care aids from your nursing care fund.
- You can, for example, submit the application for care aids by post and – in the case of many care insurance funds – hand it in personally at the office or submit it online.
- The care insurance fund will examine your application and inform you of the result.
- The nursing care fund
- takes over the agreed contract prices
- transfers you the monthly lump sum for care aids,
- assumes the costs for the technical care aid, minus your own contribution, or
- lends you the technical care aid.
- In the event of subsequent changes to the type and quantity of care aids, submit a new application.
Requirements
- You have a degree of care
- You will be cared for in the home environment
Which documents are required?
- Decision of the nursing care fund on determination of the degree of care (report of the medical service of the nursing care insurance)
- if applicable: power of attorney, supervisor card
- where applicable: medical documents
- if applicable: severely disabled person's pass
- Proof of health and long-term care insurance
Depending on the individual case, further documents may be required. Please contact your nursing care insurance fund for more information.
What are the fees?
You do not have to pay anything for the application.
What deadlines do I have to pay attention to?
In principle, the nursing care fund must decide no later than 3 weeks after receipt of the application. If it obtains an opinion from the Medical Service, it must inform the insured person and decide within 5 weeks of receipt of the application. If the nursing care fund is unable to comply with these deadlines, it will notify this in writing or electronically in good time, stating the reasons. If there is no notification of a sufficient reason, the service shall be deemed to have been approved after expiry of the deadline.
Processing duration
Processing usually takes about 2 to 6 business days.
For a quick processing and decision, your nursing care fund must have the necessary information and, if necessary, necessary documents complete and meaningful.
The nursing care fund decides on applications promptly.
Please note that the stated processing time is an average value of all care insurance funds. It may vary in individual cases.
The exact processing time also depends on the complexity of the individual case and can be extended accordingly. The same applies if documents or documents are sent by post to you or your nursing care fund.
If necessary, the Medical Service must be involved. The processing of your request is usually extended by about 3 to 4 weeks.
Applications / forms
- Forms: yes
- Online procedure possible: Many care insurance companies offer an online procedure.
- Written form required: no
- Personal appearance required: no
To the application for care aids via the cash register navigator of the GKV-Spitzenverband
Appeal
- Contradiction
- Action before the Social Court
Technically approved by
Federal Ministry of Health
Professionally released on
22.11.2021
Author
The text was automatically translated based on the German content.
