German leaders push for comprehensive pension and care insurance reforms

CDA chairman Dennis Radtke urged a long‑term overhaul of Germany’s care insurance, warning that reforms should go beyond short‑term budget fixes. He advocated shifting more costs for non‑insurance services to tax financing, capping personal contributions, extending contribution obligations to mini‑jobs and strengthening support for home‑based caregivers.

FDP parliamentary leader Christopher Vogt criticised the government’s planned pension reform, calling for adjustments such as a larger role for a capital‑based “stock pension”, tax incentives for private retirement savings and protection of low‑threshold earnings from mini‑jobs. Vogt said the current proposal risks increasing burdens on younger workers, the self‑employed and students, and could exacerbate old‑age poverty.

Both politicians refer to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s and Minister Bärbel Bas’s intention to adopt the 33 recommendations of the recent pension commission, a package that aims to secure the statutory pension and long‑term care system for future generations.