Overview
- The Social Court in Darmstadt held that sick pay can continue when a new illness starts right after a weekend, even if the diagnosis changes (S 8 AL 348/21).
- The judges applied the “next working day” rule in §46 SGB V by analogy and ordered the insurer to pay for a period in November to December 2021.
- The Higher Social Court in Hamburg said patients must secure a timely follow-up certificate or lose payment for gap days (AZ: 1 KR 23/24).
- The Hamburg court said a phone call to the practice is usually reasonable and only extreme states like unconsciousness excuse inaction, as a five-day gap in 2017 remained unpaid.
- A 2019 law keeps future entitlement if a new note for the same illness is issued within a month, yet the days inside any break still bring no money, prompting lawyers and outlets to urge patients to call the doctor one to two days before a note expires.