The Federal Joint Committee: Who we are and what we do

The Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) is a public legal entity comprising the four leading umbrella organizations of the self-governing German healthcare system: the National Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians and Dentists, the German Hospital Federation, and the Central Federal Association of Health Insurance Funds. In addition to these four pillar organizations, patient representatives also participate in all sessions; they are entitled to put topics on the agenda, but not to vote.

The G-BA was established on 1 January 2004 as a result of the Healthcare Modernization Act, and took over the mandates of its predecessor organizations: the former federal committees of physicians, dentists, and statutory health insurance providers, the hospitals committee, and the coordination committee. The G-BA began its fourth term of office on 1 July 2018.

The legal basis for the work of the G-BA is the German Social Code, Book Five (SGB V), in which lawmakers have specified the mandates and responsibilities of the G-BA, the appointment of its members, patient involvement, the inclusion of third parties, and the general framework of the structures and procedures of the G-BA. In its bylaws and rules of procedure – both of which must be approved by the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) – the G-BA defines the details of these statutory regulations.

The Federal Joint Committee is under the statutory supervision of the Federal Ministry of Health. Resolutions and directives passed by the G-BA are audited by the Federal Ministry of Health in accordance with the requirements set forth in SGB V, and then published in the Federal Gazette if no objections are found.

These pages contain information on the members of the G-BA, the decision-making body (plenum), the subcommittees that prepare decisions, the involvement of patient representatives, and the staff office.