We had a good meeting with German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel. She spent most of the time discussing foreign issues and the automobile question. Chancellor Merkel made it clear that in some of these international issues she thinks it is in the interest of Germany and the U.S. to have China and Russia on board. For instance, if you can get Germany, the U.S., China, and Russia to agree you can probably make some significant changes in Iran. The Chancellor made an interesting comment when asked to speculate about Iran. She said she didn’t think it made any sense to speculate on what the final option is, but that it was clear that the U.S. would have a great deal to say if it got to that point.

The Chancellor indicated she would be very happy if President Obama would return to Germany and be there on November 9th, which is the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down. Merkel and Bush had a good personal relationship. The same is not yet true of Merkel and Obama.

The Chancellor recognizes the problems with the German economy, especially in the export area where Germany is down 30%. The Chancellor believes it is extremely important to work on worldwide standards, rules, etc., to take away barriers to free trade. She believes free trade is extremely important, not only economically, but politically.

Merkel is a tough political leader who started as an outsider and won an uphill battle. In the time she spent with us she had no notes, did not need any questions answered by aides, and knew what she was talking about.

We had an interesting session on the German health system, which is apparently well received by the German public. In the U.S. we have 45 million citizens who are uninsured. We spend 16% of our GDP (over $2.2 trillion) on healthcare in the United States. The Germans have a statutory health insurance systems, 95% of the cost comes from contributions, and 5% from tax revenues. The contributions are based on the ability to pay. In Germany a person’s health insurance in never lost. If you can’t pay, social agencies will pay.

The Health Minister of Germany said that healthcare is a prerequisite for democracy. The Minister feels the key is how to integrate reforms and get around the vested interests of the lobbyists who try to block progress.

There was much discussion about how the German public gets information about doctors, treatment choices, etc. There is a panel set up to decide if a new treatment works and is available to the members of the plan. There has been some recent focus on making prevention more important. While I am not sure of all in the plan, I believe that the Germans have a free choice of doctors regardless of the plan they are in.

There are 196 health insurance private funds. These are non-profit organizations self-funded and self-administered. This is in contrast to statutory health insurance, which is totally governmental. The payroll tax that Germans contribute is 15.5% of their income with a cap of 40,000 Euros per year. The employers also have a contribution of 7.5%. I am not sure if that is in addition to the contribution by the employees.

The session was too short to get a total understanding of the German health system. It is clear however that there is nearly universal healthcare in Germany even though it is expensive, and there are provisions for those to get and keep insurance who are at the low end of the economic spectrum.

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Lou Frey represented Central Florida in the U. S. Congress from 1969 to 1979. In his last election, he received nearly 80% of the vote. He was elected one of five Republican leaders in the House of Representatives during the 93rd and 94th Congress. He served on...