Karl Lauterbach
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Karl Wilhelm Lauterbach (; born 21 February 1963) is a German
scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosoph ...
,
physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
, and politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) who has served as Federal Minister of Health since 8 December 2021. He is professor of
health economics Health economics is a branch of economics concerned with issues related to efficiency, effectiveness, value and behavior in the production and consumption of health and healthcare. Health economics is important in determining how to improv ...
and
epidemiology Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evide ...
at the
University of Cologne The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...
(on leave since 2005). Since the 2005 federal elections, he has been a Member of the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
(the federal parliament of Germany). During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, his name became well known in Germany, through his frequent appearances on television talk shows as an invited guest expert, along with his frequent use of
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to provide commentary about the ongoing pandemic.


Education and career

Lauterbach studied
human medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...
at the RWTH Aachen University,
University of Texas at San Antonio The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) is a Public university, public research university in San Antonio, Texas. With over 34,000 students across its four campuses spanning 758 acres, UTSA is the Education in San Antonio, largest universi ...
and
University of Düsseldorf A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, where he graduated. From 1989 to 1992, he studied health policy and management as well as epidemiology at the
Harvard School of Public Health The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. The school grew out of the Harvard- MIT School for Health Officers, the nation's firs ...
in
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, graduating with a
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in 1992. From 1992 to 1993, he held a fellowship at the
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
, sponsored by the
Konrad Adenauer Foundation The Konrad Adenauer Foundation (german: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, KAS) is a German political party foundation associated with but independent of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). The foundation's headquarters are located in Sank ...
, which is close to the CDU. Lauterbach was a CDU member for several years before joining the SPD in 2001. From 1998 until 2005, Lauterbach served as the director of the Institute of Health Economics and Clinical Epidemiology (IGKE) at the
University of Cologne The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...
, and was subsequently on leave from that role due to his tenure in the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
. He was appointed adjunct professor at the
Harvard School of Public Health The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. The school grew out of the Harvard- MIT School for Health Officers, the nation's firs ...
in 2008. He was a member of the ''Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der Entwicklung im Gesundheitswesen'' (the council of experts advising the federal government on developments in the German healthcare system) from 1999 until he was elected to the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
in September 2005. He was a member of the '' Rürup Commission'', a government-appointed committee of experts that was established to review the financing of the social insurance systems.


Bundestag career


In opposition (16th and 17th Bundestag)

Lauterbach made his entry to the Bundestag with a direct mandate by winning in his electoral district Leverkusen – Cologne IV at the 2005 federal elections. Between 2005 and 2013, he served on the Health Committee. Within the SPD parliamentary group, Lauterbach belongs to the Parliamentary Left, a left-wing movement.


Shadow minister of health (18th and 19th Bundestag)

Ahead of the 2013 federal elections,
Peer Steinbrück Peer Steinbrück (born 10 January 1947) is a German politician who was the Chancellor-candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in the 2013 federal election. Steinbrück served as the eighth Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia f ...
included Lauterbach in his shadow cabinet for the SPD's campaign to unseat incumbent Chancellor
Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Opp ...
. During the campaign, he served as shadow minister of health. In the negotiations to form a government following the elections, he led the SPD delegation in the health working group and his co-chair from the
CDU/CSU CDU/CSU, unofficially the Union parties (german: Unionsparteien, ) or the Union, is a centre-right Christian-democratic political alliance of two political parties in Germany: the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Soc ...
was
Jens Spahn Jens Georg Spahn (born 16 May 1980) is a German politician who served as Federal Minister of Health in the fourth cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2018 to 2021. A member of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), he has bee ...
. From 2013 until 2019, he served as deputy chairman of the SPD parliamentary group under the leadership of successive chairpersons
Thomas Oppermann Thomas Ludwig Albert Oppermann (27 April 195425 October 2020) was a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). From October 2017 until his death he served as Vice President of the Bundestag. In his earlier career, he serv ...
(2013–2017) and
Andrea Nahles Andrea Maria Nahles (born 20 June 1970) is a former German politician who has been the director of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) since 2022. Nahles is best known for having served as leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) from April ...
(2017–2019). Appointed by Federal Minister of Health
Hermann Gröhe Gottfried Hermann Gröhe (born 25 February 1961) is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as Minister of Health in the third cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2013 until 2018. Early life and ...
, Lauterbach served as member of an expert commission on the reform of Germany's hospital care from 2015 until 2017. From 2018 until 2019, he chaired an expert commission advising
Mayor of Berlin The Governing Mayor (german: Regierender Bürgermeister) of Berlin is the head of government, presiding over the Berlin Senate. As Berlin is an independent city as well as one of the constituent States of Germany (''Bundesländer''), the office i ...
Michael Müller on strategies for the city's health sector.


Covid-19 advisor to Merkel

During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Lauterbach quickly rose to national prominence. He served as an advisor of Chancellor
Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Opp ...
during the pandemic. He became well known to a wide audience through his frequency of appearancesan unsurpassed 30 by 17 December 2020as guest expert in talk shows, as well as his frequent use of
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
. Early on in the pandemic, during the first lockdown from April to June 2020, he often cautioned against the negative effects of premature relaxation of restrictions. Later he was one of those who warned early of a second wave of the pandemic. In August 2021, he criticized state governmentseducation is managed by individual states in Germanyfor what he saw as their poor pandemic preparation for the upcoming school year, and proposed to limit travelling by long-distance trains to those with a recent negative COVID-19 test, the vaccinated, and the recovered (the '3G rule'). For his views he became the target of intense hatred by many COVID-19 deniers and anti-vaxxers, frequently receiving death threats. However, his reputation was believed to have contributed to his strong result in the 2021 federal election.


Minister of Health (20th Bundestag)

In the 2021 German federal election, Lauterbach comfortably won the seat in Leverkusen and thus secured his return to the Bundestag, in spite of not having been nominated at a top place in the SPD's party list. In the negotiations to form a so-called
traffic light coalition In German politics, a traffic light coalition (german: Ampelkoalition) is a coalition government of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Alliance 90/The Greens. It is named after the parties' tra ...
of the SPD, the
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...
and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) following the 2021 federal elections, Lauterbach was part of his party's delegation in the working group on health, co-chaired by
Katja Pähle Katja Pähle (born 27 June 1977) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Since 2016, she has served as chairwoman of the SPD parliamentary group in the Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt. She has also been deputy leader of the party's s ...
, Maria Klein-Schmeink and Christine Aschenberg-Dugnus. On 6 December 2021, Lauterbach was designated as Federal Minister of Health in the
traffic light coalition In German politics, a traffic light coalition (german: Ampelkoalition) is a coalition government of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Alliance 90/The Greens. It is named after the parties' tra ...
. He assumed the office on 8 December 2021 when the Scholz cabinet was formally appointed by
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Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician serving as President of Germany since 19 March 2017. He was previously Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2017, as well as Vice Chan ...
. Due to Lauterbach's high profile in Germany as a media commentator on the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, ''
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s
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
correspondent Tom Nuttall described his nomination to the cabinet as "perhaps the most eagerly awaited health minister appointment in the history of the democratic world". On 8 December 2021 at his formal induction ceremony Lauterbach said: "Health policy, as I see it, can only be successful when it’s anchored in evidence-based medicine." On 10 December 2021 the Bundestag passed a health-care worker Covid-19 vaccine law which was to come into effect on 15 March 2022. Lauterbach told the Bundestag that: "Such a vaccine mandate is necessary because it is completely unacceptable that at the end of the second year of this pandemic, people who live in care homes die unnecessarily because workers there are unvaccinated." On 11 December 2021 the ''
Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...
'' celebrated Lauterbach's appointment to Health Minister. Its headline read "Germany’s ‘Fauci,’ a Harvard-educated doctor, gets ready to tackle the pandemic", while it noted that the Health Ministry has an annual 56 billion euro budget. A week into his tenure during a visit to
Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
, Lauterbach expressed concerns that Germany might be headed towards a much stronger fifth wave of COVID-19 infections, specifically for the omicron variant. He also said he expected the country to suffer from a vaccine shortage in the first quarter. In January 2022 Lauterbach raised the covid-19 vaccination rate target to achieve "so-called herd immunity" against the coronavirus. In a January 2022 interview with '' Die Welt am Sonntag'' Lauterbach stated that he wanted to vaccinate for Covid-19 every German and said: "We cannot get into a situation where one summer is deceptively good, but new variants surprise us in the autumn – and without the broad majority of the population being vaccinated." On 12 April 2022 Lauterbach was disappointed when he failed to pass through the Bundestag a law which would have made COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for people over 60 years of age. In total, 378 members of the Bundestag voted against the law, while 296 supported it. The bill as it had been originally proposed would have made all adults subject to the needle, and it would have established compulsory propaganda counselling sessions for all adults. On 14 April 2022 prosecutors announced publicly that they had detained four people suspected of plotting to kidnap Lauterbach and destroy power facilities to cause a nationwide power outage. On 18 May 2022 Lauterbach announced government plans to spend an additional 830 million euros on coronavirus vaccines. On 19 May 2022 Lauterbach expressed his approval of the
Federal Constitutional Court The Federal Constitutional Court (german: link=no, Bundesverfassungsgericht ; abbreviated: ) is the supreme constitutional court for the Federal Republic of Germany, established by the constitution or Basic Law () of Germany. Since its in ...
's ruling that Covid-19 vaccines could be mandated for health workers, in the following words: "the state is obliged to protect vulnerable groups." In August 2022 Lauterbach announced his plans to submit for Parliamentary approval a new wave of Covid-19 measures: masks would be mandatory on planes, trains and long-distance buses from October 2022 to April 2023. Mask would be mandatory indoor public events, on local public transportation, and in schools. On 13 October 2022 the ringleader of the plot to kidnap Lauterbach was arrested. Plotters were opposed to the government’s covid-19 measures, and they were intent on "triggering civil war-like conditions in Germany and thus ultimately bringing about the overthrow of the federal government and parliamentary democracy." On 26 October 2022 Lauterbach presented a cornerstone paper on planned legislation to regulate the controlled distribution and consumption of cannabis for recreational purposes among adults. On 28 November 2022 Lauterbach was said to be one of the main targets of a suspected terrorist group of conspirators, which was rounded up by
German police Law enforcement in Germany is constitutionally vested solely with the states, which is one of the main features of the German political system. Policing has always been a responsibility of the German states even after 1871 when the country was ...
. The terrorist group planned, among other things, his kidnapping. The terrorists planned to act during a talk show appearance of his, and in the further course a coup should be provoked.


Other activities


Corporate boards

* Rhön-Klinikum, member of the supervisory board (2005–2013)


Non-profit organizations

* German Foundation for Consumer Protection, member of the Board of Trustees (since 2019) * Muhanna-Stiftung, member of the Board of Trustees * German United Services Trade Union (ver.di), member


Political positions

Lauterbach is a strong advocate of the so-called ''Bürgerversicherung'', mainly favoured by the Social Democrats. The idea includes the reorganization of the German health system and the incorporation of all people and all income groups into the financing of the health care system. Along with Swen Schulz, Otto Fricke, Katrin Helling-Plahr and
Petra Sitte Petra Sitte (born 1 December 1960) is a German politician. She represents The Left. Petra Sitte has served as a member of the Bundestag from the state of Saxony-Anhalt since 2005. Life Sitte was born in Dresden, Saxony. After graduating from ...
, Lauterbach was one of the authors of a cross-party initiative in 2021 to liberalize the legal framework for assisted suicide in Germany.


2019 leadership bid

In the 2019 SPD leadership election, Lauterbach announced his intention to run for the position as the party's co-chair, together with
Nina Scheer Nina Scheer (born 11 September 1971) is a German lawyer and politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been a member of the Bundestag since 2013. Her political interests include energy policy and climate change. In 2019, Scheer was ...
. He has since been serving on the German Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs and Consumer Protection and its Subcommittee on European Law.


Undeclared income

In May 2021, several months ahead of the national elections, Lauterbach admitted on
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
that he had been late to declare to the German Parliament's administration a total of 17,850 euros in additional income he had received the previous year as an
advance payment An advance payment, or simply an advance, is the part of a contractually due sum that is paid or received in advance for goods or services, while the balance included in the invoice will only follow the delivery. Advance payments are recorded as a ...
for a
book deal Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
.


Awards

In 2020 Lauterbach was awarded with die Salomon Neumann medal by the German society for social medicine and prevention DGSMP. In 2022 he won the social media award Der Goldene Blogger as "Twitter account of the year".


Personal life

In 1996, Lauterbach married epidemiologist and physician Angela Spelsberg. They have four children together. The two divorced in 2010 after having separated in 2004. Lauterbach has a further child from another relationship.


References


External links


Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lauterbach, Karl 1963 births Living people German public health doctors Harvard School of Public Health alumni Harvard University staff Health ministers of Germany Members of the Bundestag for North Rhine-Westphalia Members of the Bundestag 2021–2025 Members of the Bundestag 2017–2021 Members of the Bundestag 2013–2017 Members of the Bundestag 2009–2013 Members of the Bundestag 2005–2009 Members of the Bundestag for the Social Democratic Party of Germany People from Düren RWTH Aachen University alumni