[Prevention as a pension insurance task: innovative models complementing proven concepts]

Health-related strategies aimed at ensuring long-term participation in working life are gaining increasing importance against a background of longer working lives and demographic change. Medical and vocational rehabilitation under the German statutory pension insurance scheme are among these strategies. For a long time already, preventive concepts have been taken into account in rehabilitation so that the pension insurance's prevention approach is mainly based on the experience gained with preventive-modules in rehabilitation and follow-up care. Having so far only been able to offer in-patient prevention benefits, the statutory pension insurance scheme now can offer out-patient prevention measures, given the amendment it initiated to change Section 31 (1) no. 2 of Book 6 of the German Social Code which came into effect on January 1, 2009. The common guidelines of the statutory pension insurance institutions directed at ensuring continued working capacity were revised relative to the preventive benefits contained and were supplemented by recommendations for their use. The changing occupational demands in modern service society have thus been taken into account, and prevention benefits can be implemented in a more flexible manner following successful trials. The concept of out-patient prevention measures following along at the workplace and during leisure time is intended to enhance sustainability of acquired health-promoting behaviours in every day (working) life. At present this new concept is being tried out in various circumscribed pilot projects by several pension insurance institutions, partly in combination with in-patient components. On account of their specific know-how and their regional networks with enterprises, rehabilitation facilities are destined as locations for carrying out pension insurance prevention benefits.