Hospital staff salaries are determined by the wage agreement with the State and therefore increase by an average of 2.5%.

Christian Oberlé, president of Luxembourg's National Health Fund (CNS), rejected claims by the Association of Doctors and Dentists (AMMD) that doctors were treated less favourably than hospital staff in negotiations over tariff increases. He pointed out that hospital staff salaries are tied to the State wage agreement and rise by an average of 2.5%.

Talks between the CNS and AMMD collapsed in September, prompting the doctors’ association to call an extraordinary meeting on 8 October, where members will vote on whether to terminate their agreement with the CNS. The AMMD had demanded a 2.68% increase, while the CNS was only willing to offer 1.34%.

According to CNS president Christian Oberlé, the increase demanded by the AMMD would grant private practitioners significantly more than hospital staff.

“That represents around €24 million per year. If we divide that by roughly 3,000 doctors, likely the number is slightly smaller, it comes to about €4,000 per person. They are asking for double that, or about €8,000 per person. By comparison, hospital staff salaries rise by about 2.5%. With an average annual salary of €100,000, that amounts to €2,500 per person. These are completely different figures and contexts, which is why we have always avoided comparing the two,” Oberlé explained.