Bilateral health policy

The objective of bilateral health policy is to advance both healthcare and health promotion. Cooperation and the exchange of know-how and experience benefit both sides. Such cooperation comprises an exchange not only with neighbouring countries, e.g. on cross-border healthcare, but also with EU member states on projects and issues at the European level. There is also a regular dialogue on a wide array of topics with partner countries around the world.

Bilateral cooperation centres around countries with which the Federal Government holds inter-governmental consultations (including France, the United Kingdom, Poland, the Netherlands, China, India and Brazil) and around countries that have come into focus for overarching reasons (e.g. Ukraine). By the same token, intensive bilateral relations at the political and technical level are maintained with our direct neighbours. Beyond that, the BMG maintains structured bilateral relations with more than 40 countries that are underpinned by Joint Declarations of Intent regarding the Cooperation in the Field of Health. They set out the cooperation projects agreed on in specific areas of action.

Examples of bilateral cooperation

The topics and focus areas of the bilateral work are very broad and are based on shared interests. More recently, they included pandemic preparedness and resilience, global health security challenges, cross-border healthcare, digitalisation, system solutions in healthcare, knowledge transfer in healthcare professions, matters relating to the organisation, quality and financing of long-term care as well as the health workforce shortage.

Recurring, established meetings

Meetings of the Ministers for Health and Social Affairs of German-speaking countries

Once a year, the ministers responsible for health from the five German-language countries Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Switzerland come together for a meeting. The chair rotates, and the agenda is mostly in response to current topics.

Franco-German Council of Ministers

The close partnership with France is also reflected in the annual joint Cabinet meetings. In fact, these are far more than just a symbol of Franco-German friendship: They feature discussions on matters ranging from cross-border healthcare to joint positions on European topics.