Decentralized institutions to provide reliable and complete information about social services
On the occasion of the dialogue on the future initiated by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) in 2018 with citizens in various regions of Germany, the need for easier orientation on state social benefits via one-stop contact points and competent advice was clearly expressed, along with many other aspects.
In particular, decentralised institutions such as the municipal insurance offices, but also the local branches of the pension insurance, the employment agencies or health insurance funds were addressed. Based on this finding, a first exploratory study on municipal insurance offices was presented in April 2021. On the one hand, this study has raised the need for further research, but on the other hand, it has also raised the need for further discussion on the design of the role of the insurance offices in the future.
The present study discusses design models for the future of insurance offices as a possible pillar of nationwide, local and personal information and counselling services in the field of social insurance.
In addition to representatives of the insurance offices, efforts were made to include other groups relevant to this policy field in the discussion via focus groups, most notably insured persons, social associations, social counselling centres, the German Pension Insurance, the municipal umbrella organisations and state ministries.
