BERLIN (dpa-AFX): The Bundesrat completed an extensive agenda ahead of the weekend, processing a series of legislative projects. The upper house of parliament approved plans for new services in pharmacies, lower taxes on airline tickets, and the annual pension adjustment effective July 1. Individual federal states also introduced their own initiatives, including measures against AfD demands to weaken compulsory schooling.

Pharmacy Reform

In the future, pharmacies will be permitted to offer all vaccinations using so-called inactivated vaccines, such as those for tetanus, in addition to flu and Covid-19 shots. Blood sampling will also be allowed to monitor the effects of medication. Furthermore, medications may be dispensed without a medical prescription in the future if they have been taken for a longer period and the continuation of therapy allows for no delay. In such cases, a one-time dispensing of the smallest package size against self-payment will be permitted.

Higher Pensions

The more than 21m retirees in Germany will receive more money starting in July. Pensions will rise by 4.24 percent as planned through the annual adjustment, which is based on wage development. The Bundesrat approved the corresponding ordinance from the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs. A monthly pension of €1,000 will thus increase by a good €42. For a standard pension based on average earnings and 45 years of contributions, the pension adjustment represents an increase of €77.85 per month, according to the Social Ministry.

Electronic Ankle Monitors for Domestic Violence

So-called electronic ankle monitors are already in use today, for example, to monitor the location of released sex offenders. Some states also already have rules for their use in cases of domestic violence. The Bundesrat has now approved the reform of the Violence Protection Act, already passed by the Bundestag, which provides for this possibility nationwide. Courts will be able to mandate that perpetrators wear the ankle monitor to enforce a restraining order. If the perpetrator comes too close, the victim is warned via a receiving device.

Lower Tax on Airline Tickets

Airline tickets for flights from Germany will be taxed less heavily starting in July, as planned. The Bundesrat allowed corresponding plans to reduce the ticket tax to pass. The levy will decrease by an amount between €2.50 and €11.40 per flight, depending on the route. Whether airline tickets will actually become cheaper remains questionable. Eurowings, for instance, has already dampened expectations. Other cost increases, particularly for fuel, have overshadowed the development, the Lufthansa subsidiary explained.

As always, the Bundesrat also launched its own initiatives:

No Trade in Personal Items of Nazi Victims

Documents, letters from concentration camps, diaries, and other personal items of Nazi victims, such as clothing marked with a yellow star or a triangle, shall no longer be traded. The Bundesrat unanimously passed a bill on the initiative of North Rhine-Westphalia, which the Bundestag must now consider. The move is justified by the protection of the memory and dignity of the victims of National Socialism. Profit should no longer be made from their suffering, it was stated. Museums, archives, libraries, and research institutions are to be exempt from the trade ban.

State Initiative Against AfD Plan to Weaken Compulsory Schooling

Several federal states want the Bundesrat to take a stand against attempts to weaken compulsory schooling in Germany. Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, and Hamburg introduced a motion to this effect. The background involves demands from the AfD, currently in the election campaign in Saxony-Anhalt. "Compulsory education instead of forced schooling!" the party writes in its election program, advocating for a choice for parents between school and home schooling. Thuringia's Prime Minister Mario Voigt (CDU) said in the Bundesrat: "Abolishing compulsory schooling takes an axe to something that has successfully shaped Germany for years."

Criticism of Health Savings Plans

The plans of the black-red coalition for spending caps in the healthcare system took up significant space during the long session of the upper house. The legislative project is intended to prevent further contribution increases and was discussed for the first time in the Bundesrat. The states are critical of many aspects and, in a statement, called for the deletion of various cost-cutting measures affecting clinics, practices, pharmacies, and the pharmaceutical industry. The law does not require the approval of the Bundesrat, but the states could slow it down by calling the mediation committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat. The President of the Bundesrat, Bremen's Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte (SPD), told the ZDF "Morgenmagazin" that he expects this to happen./jr/DP/jha