What does the infection protection instruction cost?
The fee is set out in the fee ordinance of your federal state or local authority; there are no uniform nationwide amounts. Reductions for pupils, trainees and volunteers are common, but must be applied for. More important than the amount, in any case, is what you are paying for: it is an instruction, not an examination. The word “health certificate” does not appear in the Infection Protection Act — it comes from the Federal Epidemics Act (Bundes-Seuchengesetz), which applied until the end of 2000, and that document did in fact require a medical examination. Today there is no examination, only instruction. And the certificate is valid indefinitely: what is repeated every two years is the follow-up instruction given by the employer, and that costs nothing.
Who needs an official medical examination?
Anyone who is to be appointed as a civil servant, whose fitness for service is being assessed, or who is otherwise officially assessed for another reason. The costs are generally borne by the employer, who also commissions the assessment. The most important point here is almost always reported incorrectly: you receive a copy. Under § 48 Abs. 3 of the Federal Civil Service Act (Bundesbeamtengesetz, BBG), the doctor sends the person concerned a duplicate of the notification to the employer; only where medical reasons preclude this does it go to a named person of trust instead. Under Abs. 2, moreover, only the material findings and reasons go to the authority itself, to the extent that knowledge of them is necessary for the decision, and in a sealed envelope — not the medical history.
Is the school entry examination mandatory?
Yes — however under state law, not federal law: the requirement follows from the School Act of the respective federal state, which is why the timing, scope and procedure differ. For families it is free of charge. What it is not is a precondition for school enrolment. The school decides on admission and deferral under school law; the examination provides a health assessment for this purpose and is intended above all to identify the need for support early. A conspicuous finding therefore, as a rule, leads to a recommendation, not to exclusion.
Who must have Legionella testing carried out?
Not whoever has many apartments — the number of residential units is not in the law. § 31 of the Drinking Water Ordinance (Trinkwasserverordnung, TrinkwV) requires three features at the same time: a storage drinking-water heater of over 400 litres or more than three litres of content in a pipe between the heater and the point of use, a shower or another fitting that produces an aerosol, and the building is not a one- or two-family house. And there are two testing cycles: for commercial activity — the standard case of renting and leasing — every three years, whereas for public activity in hospitals, care homes, schools, hotels and sports facilities, annually. The maximum regulatory fine of up to €25,000 follows from § 73 IfSG, to which § 72 TrinkwV refers.
Is the social psychiatric service free of charge?
Yes: advice, crisis intervention and home visits are free of charge, neither a referral nor a health insurance card is needed, and nothing is billed to a health insurance fund — so no record is created there either. All staff are bound by professional confidentiality, and advice is expressly also given to those who come as relatives. The most common inhibition rests on a misconception, though: the service cannot commit anyone. Under Art. 104 Abs. 2 of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz, GG), only a judge may decide on committal against a person's will, and the state laws require for this a substantial, present danger that cannot be averted by other means.
