Faq about the electronic health professional card

The electronic doctor’s card Is a personal smart card in check card format. In addition to its classic function as a visual ID, it also serves as an instrument that certifies its holder’s affiliation to the profession of "doctor" in the digital world. This is necessary because the legislator has stipulated that access to the data on the electronic health card (eGK) and the medical applications of the telematics infrastructure (TI) may only be granted to authorized persons. Depending on the application, these are e. B. Doctors or pharmacists. Therefore, these authorized persons must be equipped with a corresponding electronic ID card. Compared to all other electronic health professional cards (z. B. for pharmacists, psychotherapists), the electronic doctor’s card has the most comprehensive access rights.

2. What functions does the electronic doctor’s card have?

The electronic physician ID card (eDoctor ID card) has five basic functions:

Visual ID: Like its classic predecessor – the paper doctor’s card – it serves together with the official photo ID as a visual identity card, e.g. a doctor’s identity card. to buy prescription drugs in a pharmacy.
signature: The holder can create an electronic signature (qualified electronic signature – QES) with the eDoctor ID card. This electronic signature is legally equivalent to a handwritten signature. It can be used to electronically sign doctor’s letters, billing documents for the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, emergency data on the electronic health card, electronic prescriptions or electronic certificates of incapacity to work in a legally secure manner and without media discontinuity. The electronic signature is triggered by entering a self-assigned, at least 6-digit PIN. By means of the so-called. Multiple signatures can also be triggered with a single PIN entry. With the so-called convenience signature, the PIN only has to be entered once and then a so-called triggering feature (z. B. double-click on the practice management system) further signatures can be triggered.
Authentication: With the eDoctor ID card, it is possible to identify oneself securely in the electronic world with one’s virtual identity and in the capacity of "doctor", z. B. at portals of chambers or physician networks or in the telematics infrastructure. Insecure logon procedures can be replaced and raised to a higher level of security. This functionality is the core for subsequent access to the electronic patient files of insured persons.
Confidentiality: The eDoctor ID card is capable of securely encrypting and decrypting medical data. This significantly increases the level of data protection and security when transferring personal medical data or confidential information.
eGK access: The e-prescription card can be used to access medical data stored on the patient’s eGK, e.g. "emergency data" and "electronic medication plan".

3. For which applications do I need the electronic physician ID card today or in the near future??

The electronic doctor’s identity card (e-doctor’s identity card) will increasingly become an integral part of the medical profession. For some time now, practice management systems have offered the option of signing the quarterly collective accounts of selected associations of panel physicians or private medical clearing houses.

According to the current statutory regulations you need an eDoctor ID card for the applications listed in the following table on the dates indicated, some of which are subject to sanctions. In addition, the table lists the functions of the applications for which the e-doctor ID card is mandatory from a technical point of view.

At 30.06.2021 must be Contract physicians have mandatorily equipped with the necessary components and services for the use of the ePA. This also includes the eDoctor ID card. / Sanction: Flat-rate reduction in remuneration of 1 percent.

Access to data in the application only if the person accessing the data has an e-doctor ID card (§ 339 Para. 3 SGB V).

No legally fixed date.

Emergency data
Informing the insured about the existence and storage location of health care proxies or living wills
Notification of the insured of the existence and storage location of declarations on organ and tissue donation

Access to data in the application only if the person accessing it has an eDoctor ID card (§ 339 para. 3 SGB V).

Insured patients are entitled to have an emergency record created and updated.

No legally fixed deadline.

All accesses are possible with SMC-B (practice ID card).

Introduction of the e-prescription from 01.07.2021.
Mandatory application to 01.01.2022 for prescription
of pharmacy-only drugs via the statutory health insurance system.

Transitional regulation Via a KBV guideline: If the issuing of e-prescriptions is not technically feasible, prescriptions can be to 30.06.2022 be issued with established processes (model 16).

Is mandatory for the signature of the e-recipe.

In accordance with legal requirements, the eDoctor ID card is mandatory for legally secure qualified electronic signature (QES).

According to a transitional agreement between KBV and GKV-Spitzenverband, the legal deadline (01.01.2021) for the mandatory sending of an eAU to the health insurance companies on 01.10.2021 extended. (BMV-a appendix 2b § 4 number 4.1.1). A further regulation negotiated between KBV and GKV-SV extends the deadline until 31 December 2009.12.2021 for medical practices that have been registered as of 1.10.do not yet have the technical requirements in place in 2021. These practices can continue to use the previous procedure (model 1 "yellow card") for the transition period.

Transitional regulation via a KBV guideline: If it is not technically feasible to issue eAUs, AUs can be to 30.06.2021 be issued with established processes (sample 1).

wide findings in the context of teleradiological consults as well as .

In addition to the above regulations, the legislator stipulates that practice cards are only issued to service provider institutions to which a holder of an electronic health professional or occupational card is assigned. (§ 340 SGB V).

There are also other possible applications beyond the healthcare sector. The electronic physician ID card can be used with its qualified electronic signature to contract any legally valid contracts.

4. What are the tasks of the Medical Association in issuing electronic physician ID cards??

The core task of the Medical Association in issuing electronic physician ID cards (eDocs) is to confirm the applicant physician’s status as a physician. Some chambers additionally offer the possibility of legally compliant identification of the applying physician by chamber employees (KammerIdent-Procedure).

Your medical association is responsible for issuing the e-doctor cards on the basis of the medical profession and chamber laws of the federal states. However, the necessary technical infrastructure that serves as the basis for the e-doctor cards is operated by service providers. These so-called trust service providers, which must be jointly approved by all German medical associations, produce the ID cards and operate the technical infrastructure for the possibility of online verification of the electronic signatures as well as the necessary blocking services, which are relevant as soon as a card is lost or the license to practice medicine is revoked.

There are currently four approved providers of the ePhysician ID card:

Note
For some technical scenarios and for billing e.g. of the NFDM application, you need a Generation 2 eDoctor ID card. If you still have a Generation 0 ID card, medisign offers you a free replacement.

5. Do I need the electronic physician ID card? I am already a participant of the KV-SafeNet, do I still need the electronic doctor’s card?

The need for an electronic doctor’s ID card arises from the applications you use via KV-SafeNet. If you use one of the applications mentioned in question 3, you will find the relevant information on the need for an electronic physician ID card there. You can find out which applications can currently be used via KV-SafeNet on the corresponding KBV website.

6. Is my paper ID card still valid if I have the electronic doctor’s ID card??

Please inform yourself about this at your responsible medical association.

7. Which of my data will be stored on the electronic physician ID card?

Only the following personal data is stored in the so-called certificates on the electronic physician ID card:

First name
Last name
if necessary. academic. Degree/Title
Professional group "physician
Telematics ID (unique number of the cardholder in the telematics infrastructure)
Optional: e-mail address

In addition, the following personal data will be optically printed on the back of the card:

EFN (uniform continuing education number)
ID card number (is also stored in the chip as a so-called ICCSN (Integrated Circuit Card Serial Number, unique chip number),)

Furthermore, the so-called national uniform physician number is transmitted to the trust service provider. This is used for secure, cross-chamber management of ID cards between medical associations and providers. This number is not stored or printed on the electronic medical ID card.

As part of the application process, the provider may collect. further data, such as date and place of birth, as well as the (registration) address and data of the official identification document presented for the purpose of secure identification of the applying physician.

8. I would like to apply for the electronic physician ID card now. What do I need to do, even if I have received the card?

The electronic doctor’s card is associated with costs and will be charged if necessary. offered by different providers at different prices. Therefore, you should first inform yourself about the electronic physician ID card, especially with regard to the costs, and then select a provider. The website of your state medical association is a good entry point for information; there you will also find links to the application portals of the approved providers.
This link will take you to the web-based application forms on the provider’s portal, where you can complete the application online. You have the option to upload your picture electronically. Some chambers also offer the possibility that the application form is already pre-filled with essential data of the applicant physician. In this case, step 2 is as follows:
After you have registered in the chamber portal, you have the possibility to check your so-called master data for correctness, or. to correct. If the necessary data is correct, you can "pre-fill" this necessary data into the application portal of your selected provider via an individual link in the chamber portal and will be automatically redirected to the web-based application form in the provider’s portal. There they add online if necessary. Still some missing information. Pre-filled information cannot be changed there.
Then print out the generated application documents and the identification form (e.g., the identification form). POSTIDENT coupon), complete any missing information. add a passport photo to the application and sign at the indicated places.
With the application documents and the official identification document provided during the application process that is still valid, you will now have either
– by appointment via KammerIdent at the medical association or
– identify you by POSTIDENT at a post office near you.
– There are also other identification options, such as. B. a Video-Ident, you can select this during the application process. (The providers offer besides o.g. procedures, they offer further, different identification procedures. You should also find out which of the procedures may be most practical for you.)
The identification office fills in the identification form with the data of your identification document presented at the identification and forwards the data electronically to the trust service provider. You send the application documents independently to the trust service provider. Your responsible medical association confirms the following to the provider. then confirms your professional group status as "physician" and releases the card production.
The provider then produces the e-doctor ID card and sends it to you by mail. For security reasons, you will receive the PIN letter for the ID card with a time delay by separate mail. With the help of the PIN, you can put the ID card "into operation" by setting individual PINs (activation). If you are successful with this, you confirm to the provider that you have received the certificate. the receipt and this subsequently "activates" your qualified electronic signature (activation).

Note on commissioning:

The activation of the electronic physician ID card, i.e. setting your individual PINs for the electronic physician ID card, you should first and foremost via the practice management system aim. To do this, you need the eHealth connector and an appropriately adapted practice management system. If you still have a VSDM connector (which has not yet been updated) or want to use the ID card completely outside the TI, then the respective provider will provide you with the corresponding software for activating the card free of charge. In this case, please contact your provider.

9. Why can’t my chamber simply send me my electronic physician ID card?? Why can’t the medical association simply confirm to the trust service provider that I am a doctor?. Finally, I am registered in the chamber?

Why do I have to identify myself?

Since the electronic physician ID card has wide-ranging applications in the online world (z. B. legally secure conclusion of contracts), the issuance of electronic physician ID cards is associated with significantly higher security measures than the issuance of the previous paper ID cards. With regard to the qualified electronic signature, the electronic doctor’s card is subject to the strict requirements of the EU regulation eIDAS, the Trust Services Act and, with regard to the possibility of accessing the data of the electronic health card, additionally to the requirements from § 291a of the SGB V (German Social Code).

Therefore, a secure and legally compliant identification of the applying physician is a prerequisite for receiving an electronic physician ID card. This secure identification is the basis for linking your real and your virtual identity. The secure and correct execution of identification prevents identity theft and thus the misuse of your identification in the online world.

As part of the secure identification required by law, you must identify yourself personally using your official identification document and sign in the presence of the identifier.

However, the various providers also offer their own identification procedures. The new ID card will also be able to be used online for this purpose in the future.

10. How much funding will I receive for the electronic doctor’s letter??

Both the sending and receiving of electronic doctor’s letters in SHI-accredited medical care is promoted if the electronic doctor’s letters are signed with a qualified electronic signature using the electronic doctor’s ID card and are sent via the KIM communication service of the telematics infrastructure.

The Federal Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) regulates the details of the funding in consultation with the National Association of Health Insurance Funds (GKV-SV) within the framework of a guideline. Further information can be found on the corresponding KBV website.

11. Is the electronic doctor’s identity card financially supported? Why is the electronic physician ID card subject to a fee? Why and who incurs costs for the electronic doctor’s letter?

The financial support in the outpatient sector is based on the "Agreement on the Financing and Reimbursement of Costs Incurred by Panel Doctors in the Context of the Introduction and Operation of the Telematics Infrastructure in Accordance with Section 291a, Paragraph 7, Sentence 5 of the German Social Code, Book V, and on the Mapping of Usage-Related Surcharges in Accordance with Section 291a, Paragraph 7b, Sentence 3 of the German Social Code, Book V" dated 14 December 2009. December 2017", which was negotiated between KBV and GKV-SV as Annex 32 to the Bundesmantelvertrag-arzte (Federal Manual Agreement for Physicians). According to this, for each electronic physician ID card, a panel physician practice receives an operating cost flat rate of 11,63 € per quarter. The passing on to employed physicians within a contract medical practice is to be regulated in the internal relationship.

The financial support in the inpatient area is based on the "Agreement between the GKV-Spitzenverband (Spitzenverband Bund der Krankenkassen) and the German Hospital Federation (Deutsche Krankenhausgesellschaft) on the financing of equipment and operating costs incurred by hospitals in connection with the introduction and operation of the telematics infrastructure in accordance with the German Telematics Act". § 291a Abs. 7a SGB V as of 1.1.2019". Accordingly, a hospital of its choice receives for each medical employee working in the hospital against proof proportionally the costs for their electronic health professional card (HBA) in the amount of flat rate 46,52 EUR per year. If this option is chosen, the hospital will ensure, in accordance with the financing agreement, that the amount is passed on internally to the respective medical employees. Does the physician need the electronic physician’s identity card in the context of his activity (bspw. in discharge management for the applications listed in question 3) in an inpatient facility, we currently assume that the costs are fully covered by the facility as a work tool. Please contact your institution first to clarify the question of costs before applying. You always have to apply for the card personally, because it is issued to you as a person and "contains" your digital signature.

The costs for the electronic doctor’s card arise first and foremost and in particular from the requirements of the legislator that the electronic doctor’s card must contain a qualified electronic signature (QES). This QES is only offered by a few providers who have to pass high technical hurdles and tests due to legal requirements. The identification of the applicant physician in accordance with the legal requirements and the provision of the so-called public key infrastructure, which can be used to check the validity of issued signatures over a period of 30 years, are also associated with high costs.

12. Are the costs for the electronic medical card tax deductible?

The deductibility of the costs for the electronic physician identification card is comparable to the IT costs for the practice management system. In detail, however, only your tax advisor can give you information.

13. In Switzerland, the Health Professional Card is included in the membership fees of the physicians’ organization, why not in Germany??

14. What total costs do I have to reckon with in order to be able to offer my patients the use of telematics applications??

The total costs are made up of a number of very different costs, which can only be finally determined once the pricing of the various industrial companies on the market and the negotiations with the payers – for reimbursement of the initial telematics-related costs for the new components (card terminals, connectors) – have been completed.

15. How long is the electronic medical certificate valid?

The so-called electronic certificates of the electronic medical card are valid for a maximum of 5 years. Depending on the cryptographic algorithms used, this validity period can also be shortened in agreement with the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

Within the contract period, your provider will take care of the automatic replacement of your badge, if necessary. The so-called telematics ID (unique identification number in telematics) ensures that access rights, for example for an electronic patient file, granted by your patients for your old ID card are also retained for your new card.

16. I am still unfamiliar with the technical terms associated with the telematics infrastructure. Where can I find a glossary?

… telematics infrastructure, connector, trust service provider (TSP), certificates, (eHealth) card terminal, communication in the medical sector (KIM), secure module card type B (SMC-B)..