Crime: Corruption trial: Former KV board member convicted

According to the court, coded disease diagnoses were subsequently changed without the involvement of the respective doctors in order to receive higher grants from the health fund. This was based on data from 2015. Further allegations relating to 2014 have not been confirmed. A third defendant – an employee of the health insurance company in question – was acquitted.

Defender: “Correcting incorrect data”

According to the court, the defendants were aware that their own supervisory authority also considered such an action to be illegal. But for the 62-year-old KV board member at the time, it was a “welcome opportunity to improve the financial situation of the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians” and also a favor for the health insurance company. The 46-year-old health insurance employee saw it as an opportunity to distinguish himself. He “gave in to the incentive and pressure.” He was fined 150 daily rates of 100 euros each.

The defense lawyers rejected the allegations in statements at the start of the trial seven months ago. Corruption is “remote,” they explained. At no time was it about falsifying correct data – “it was about correcting incorrect data”.

Charge: Excessive transfers

According to investigations, the then Berlin KV board member is said to have received data carriers from the two other defendants. The 62-year-old initiated the changes; the health insurance company received excessive allocations. “This amount could not therefore be distributed to the other health insurance companies as part of the morbidity-oriented risk structure compensation,” according to the prosecution. Initially, the proceedings involved around 85 million euros, which were wrongly paid.

With the sentences imposed, the court remained below the requests of the public prosecutor’s office, which had demanded suspended sentences of up to one year and nine months and requested a confiscation of 250,000 euros from KV-Berlin. The defense argued for acquittal. The verdict is not yet final.