Contergan victims are to receive higher compensations
The contergan victims are to receive in the future a higher compensation. SPD and CDU want to bring in an appropriate bill in the parliament. The increase of the compensation is justified by the long-term sequences, with which the victims also decades have to still fight after arising the scandal.
Berlin - the Federal association Contergeschädigter has of that
Parliamentary groups of a coalition announced new special payments for
Contergan victim welcomes. “That is a further step on the way,
to fulfill”, the deputy said our demands
Chairman of the federation Maria Woll on Thursday on strip packing-inquires. The federation was not informed yet officially about the details of the law change. Nevertheless rate it the new purchases of 3000 euros, announced by SPD and CDU/CSU, annually for contergan deformed ones as good indication, said Woll.
Starting from 2009 concerning are to be able to get additionally to existing purchases approximately 3000 euros annually, as the deputy party head inside Christel Humme (SPD) and Ilse Falk (CDU) announced on Thursday. They want to bring an appropriate draft in the next weeks for the change of the contergan foundation law into the parliament.
Federation and Grünenthal divide the costs
With the existing compensations and the new, additional special payments Schwerstgeschädigte are to be able to receive approximately 16,000 euros per year starting from 2009. The money is to serve for the repayment of the costs, which do not take over social security. The additional costs of the special payments are applied the data according to from the fortune of the contergan foundation, in which Grünenthal with in each case 50 million euros take part the federation and the company.
Already to 1 July 2008 the federation had increased the monthly compensations for contergan victims from up to then 545 euros to 1090 euros. The heightening of the achievements is necessarily become, because 50 years point themselves to the medicine scandal the long-term sequences of the deformations, explained Humme and Falk. False loads for many years of spinal column, joints and musculature would draw painful damages for the concerning. Contergan victims would have themselves despite their handicaps “in
” fought for, the politicians said their place in the occupation and private life with large commitment and self-confidence to admirable way. They would meet the life achievement of contergan deformed humans “with high acknowledgment and largest respect”, explained Humme and Falk.
Hunger strike for payments of compensation
In September three contergan deformed ones had stepped into Bergisch Gladbach for several weeks into the hunger strike. They wanted to implement higher payments of compensation of maximally 3290 euros and a single payment of one million euro per victim.
The company Grünenthal, whom for deformations the responsible person had brought to medicine contergan 1957 on the market, reacted to the strike with a letter, in which it requested the hunger strike ends for the completion of its action. “Grünenthal regrets much that suffering resulted, was called to the concerning and its families from contergan” it in the letter of the enterprise.
Grünenthal pointed out that the pensions of the contergan-concerned were doubled to 1 July by the Federal Government. The company besides voluntarily ready-clarified itself to carry again an amount out of 50 million euro “for the improvement of the personal situation of the concerning”. A speaker of the group called the letter of Grünenthal at that time “insignificant”.
