This European health care model is not looking so good these days. With a big propaganda push, Obama is trying to convince US voters that Obamacare will be better. Its not looking that way so far.

By Rainer Buergin at Bloomberg.com

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition backed higher health-insurance premiums, a move some critics from her own party said will fail to curb rising health-care costs and might undermine the German economic recovery.

Coalition leaders meeting in Berlin today agreed to raise health premiums to 15.5 percent of gross pay from 14.9 percent, Health Minister Philipp Roesler said. Employers will contribute 7.3 percent with 8.2 percent paid by employees.

“We’re including everybody, workers, employers and taxpayers,” Roesler said in a statement distributed to reporters in Berlin.

The measure is part of an overhaul of health care intended to plug an 11-billion euro ($13.8 billion) deficit in the public health-insurance system in 2011. It follows Cabinet agreement on June 29 to cuts in spending on drugs to reduce soaring costs to public health-insurance funds.

Only 3.5 billion euros of the total shortfall next year will be covered by savings in administrative costs at hospitals, dental practices, through vaccinations and drug prescriptions, a Health Ministry document shows.

FULL STORY

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