Austria’s Pensioner Association Highlights Key Social Policy Priorities at Conference
Austria’s Pensioner Association (PVร) convened a social conference attended by over 130 social experts andโฃ prominent guests,including Federal Minister of Labor,Social Affairs,Health,Care and Consumer Protection,Korinna Schumann,State Secretaryโ Ulrike Kรถnigsberger-Ludwig,Dr.in Elisabeth Rappold of Healthโค andโ Long-Term Health Austria gmbh (GรถG), and PVร-Vorarlberg state president Manfred Lackner. Teh event, led byโ Mag.a Sonja โKato, coincided with the 70th anniversary โof โthe general Social โฃInsuranceโ Act (ASVG) – a landmarkโฃ achievement in Austria’s social policy.
PVร President Birgit Gerstorfer,MBA,outlined the association’s core priorities inโ her โฃopening remarks,emphasizingโค the need to “secure pensions,fight poverty,defend โhealth as a public good and reform care.”
A central focusโข of theโ conference was the upcoming 2026โ pension adjustment. Gerstorfer โฃstated the PVร is advocatingโ for a full 2.7 percent adjustment to fully โขcompensate for inflation, arguing โคit is a matter of both respect for the older generation and maintainingโ their purchasing power. The association also called for a gradual increase in the compensation allowance to reach the poverty limit, aiming to ensure โฃno Austrianโ – child,โ adult, or pensionerโ – livesโฃ in poverty.
Regardingโค healthcare, Gerstorfer stressed the importance of maintaining worldwide access to free and readily availableโฃ services. She warnedโ against privatization and the progress of aโค two-tiered healthcare system, โฃasserting that “health must not beโ aโฃ luxury,” especially given the significant financial contributions made by pensioners through health insurance premiums.
The conferenceโ also highlighted the urgent need for completeโ careโข reform. Gerstorfer emphasized โคthat care should not be โsolely a private matter, โขand called for reforms that secure services, relieve the burden on families,โ and improve the working conditions and wages for care โprofessionals. “Nurses not only deserve thanks, but alsoโ fair wages and better working conditions!” โshe โขstated.
Concluding herโฃ remarks, gerstorferโฃ underscored the importance of continually adapting the ASVGโ to โmeet future challenges, with the goal of ensuringโค a robust social system thatโข protects all Austrians for โขgenerations to come.