Thanks to the City of Salzgitter’s voluntary program to support family physicians, another new family physician has been recruited for Salzgitter-Bad. On Friday, July 3, Mayor Frank Klingebiel presented the city’s grant award in the amount of 50,000 euros.

The presentation took place at Suat Evcümen’s pulmonology practice—which will also serve as a general practice—in Salzgitter-Bad. The established pulmonologist will soon be employing an additional physician, Majid Tashakori, who will offer consultations to patients as a family physician at the shared practice on Helenenstraße. The grant will be used to modernize the practice and purchase the necessary equipment and supplies.

“With the municipal general practice funding program—which I initiated as part of my 2022 supplemental budget, was approved by the City Council in June 2022, and was adjusted last year—and which, it should be noted, is voluntary, we as a city are making a major contribution to continue to ensure and expand primary care in Salzgitter—a responsibility that originally falls to the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians of Lower Saxony (KVN),” Klingebiel explained during the grant award ceremony.

“And our support program is having an impact,” Klingebiel continued. “Since 2022, we have provided a total of 800,000 euros in funding to 16 family practice offices, thereby creating an additional incentive for family physicians to to set up practice in Salzgitter. The coverage rate for general practitioners calculated by the KVN stood at 80.7% before the funding was introduced and had already reached 84.2% by the end of last year. This is a welcome development in the right direction, even though I fully understand that we are all eager to reach the 100 percent mark.”

First Deputy Mayor and Acting Health Commissioner Eric Neiseke adds:

“Since 2022, up to 250,000 euros have been available annually in the city budget for this purpose. The eligibility criteria for funding are as varied as the funding amounts themselves. For example, grants ranging from 10,000 euros to 100,000 euros have funded renovation projects for practice takeovers or for expanding primary care capacity.”