Düsseldorf plans cuts to STAY! Medinetz: Less money for emergency fund and clearing office

The Düsseldorf budget for 2026 includes cuts that particularly affect sensitive care: medical assistance for people without health insurance and without secure residency status. According to STAY! Medinetz, funds for the emergency fund as well as for personnel and material costs of the clearing office are to be significantly reduced. The city council will discuss the 2026 budget statute on March 19.

Specifically, it is about a reduction of the previous total amount from 215,000 euros to 160,000 euros. So far, according to the available information, 120,000 euros have been allocated to the emergency fund for treatments, medication, and operations; another 95,000 euros were intended for personnel of the clearing office and overhead costs. In the 2026 budget draft, the reduction thus corresponds to about one third.

What STAY! Medinetz does in Düsseldorf

STAY! was founded in 2009 and supports refugees in Düsseldorf. One focus is counseling – at the same time, the initiative arranges medical help for people who cannot prove health insurance or are not otherwise regularly insured. In the early years, according to sources close to the initiative, this work was largely voluntary.

Since 2015, there has been an institutionalized structure in Düsseldorf: a clearing office and an emergency fund for the medical care of undocumented people in acute situations. The basis was a council resolution from 2014; the setup started in 2015. The clearing office serves as a contact point for people who fall through the cracks of standard care and helps organize medical treatment or clarify perspectives towards health insurance.

Why anonymity and funding are so crucial in practice

For those affected, the relevant question is not only whether help is medically possible, but whether it can be accessed without obvious side effects. In Germany, there is in principle a right to medical care even for people without valid papers; in practice, however, access often depends on procedures, responsibilities, and above all on the question of funding.

Planned treatments usually have to be applied for in advance, while in acute emergencies immediate care is possible. At the same time, many people remain concerned that personal data could be passed on when using state services – especially if authorities are involved in the billing or review process. This situation increases the threshold for seeking medical help early and can lead to illnesses only being treated when they escalate.

What the planned 2026 cut would trigger from the association's perspective

STAY! Medinetz links the budget plans to very concrete consequences: If both funds for treatments and capacities of the clearing office shrink, it will become more difficult to organize medical help at all – and as a result, patients would have to be turned away more often.

According to the association, operations could also more frequently not be financed.

As a current example, STAY! cites a case in which a patient with glaucoma is dependent on an operation; without prior written cost coverage, the hospital will not operate, according to this account. Such situations mark the core problem: In serious diagnoses, the question "Who pays?" decides whether care takes place in time or is delayed – with potentially irreversible consequences.

In addition to the direct treatment costs, the future of the clearing office staff is also at stake. If personnel and material resources decrease, this affects not only the casework itself but also the ability to coordinate complex funding and care pathways at all.

Political classification: Budget not yet decided, but cut already planned

The decision is part of a broader austerity course in Düsseldorf. Many organizations in the social and cultural sector rely on municipal funding to keep their services stable. The 2026 budget has not yet been finally decided at the time of the debate – the discussion and decision lie with the council. The fact that the 2026 budget statute is on the agenda as a draft resolution on March 19 underlines: The final decision is made politically in the council, not through mere prior communication.

At the same time, the planned reduction is already included in the budget documents – and is thus politically more than an abstract calculation: It affects a structure that Düsseldorf has built up over years to make medical help accessible at all for people without regular insurance.

Point of contention: communication – and an outlook for 2027

The STAY! team criticizes that the cut came as a surprise and without warning. In a joint press conference by CDU and Greens, Mirja Cordes (Alliance 90/The Greens) pointed out that there are cuts and discussions every year; organizations could inform themselves in advance about the state of support.

At the same time, the CDU-Green coalition announced that the budget situation in 2027 could become even more difficult – further savings would be examined.

Why the conflict goes beyond a subsidy

The debate touches on a fundamental principle of municipal social policy: How resilient is a care solution for people who live in the city but have to get by without reliable insurance?

According to practical reports, some affected people have lived in Düsseldorf for years, have housing, work, and a social environment – and yet remain without legal and social safety nets. This becomes particularly dramatic when a serious illness occurs or a pregnancy needs medical support.

That is precisely why the budget for STAY! Medinetz is not just a detail in a long list of cuts. It helps decide whether low-threshold, coordinated medical help for people without regular access to health care in Düsseldorf remains stable – or whether it will reach capacity and funding limits in the coming budget years.