Reimbursement modalities of certified education and treatment programs. Overview of disease management programs of type 1/type 2 diabetes [Abrechnungsmodalitäten von zertifizierten schulungs- und behandlungsprogrammen. Überblick über die disease-management-programme bei typ-1-/typ-2-diabetes]

Background. Diabetes education is an integral and effective part of diabetes care. In Germany the disease management programs (DMP) for type 1 and type 2 diabetes entitle registered patients to participate in an evaluated structured diabetes education program. Aim. The article gives a comparative overview of contractually defined conditions of diabetes education and its reimbursement modalities within the DMPs in the different regions in Germany. Material and methods. Diabetes education programs certified by the German Federal Insurance Office (Bundesversicherungsamt, BVA) were compared concerning implementation and reimbursement modalities based on available DMPs. In this way the differences concerning the implementation and reimbursement of education programs within the DMPs of the 17 regional Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KVen) are also illustrated. Results. The DMPs are very different in relation to the number of authorized education programs, the required qualification of diabetes educators as well as duration and reimbursement of training courses and patient materials. Conclusion. The efforts to ensure the quality of established education programs should be intensified against the background of a large number of qualified diabetes educators as well as authorized education programs. © 2014 Springer-Verlag.