Prof. Dr. Andreas Hoff, Director of the GAT Institute, sheds light on the social role of family caregivers and draws attention to existing structural inequalities in an article on Deutschlandfunk radio.
Prof. Dr. Andreas Hoff, Director of the GAT Institute, spoke about the current situation of family caregivers in Germany in an interview on Deutschlandfunk radio on April 30, 2025. He emphasized the central importance of these silent helpers in the care system - both from a scientific and socio-political perspective.
In terms of content, Hoff particularly criticized the lack of financial security for family members who take on care responsibilities and work at the same time. Although there is a legal option to take time off work, there is no provision for continued payment of wages. In this context, Hoff spoke of a "justice gap" and called for a state-funded family care allowance along the lines of parental allowance. In his interview, he also referred to the recently published Working Paper GAT-WP 01/2025 on the total economic value of informal care services provided by family caregivers, which amounts to 206 billion euros per year.
With his contribution to Deutschlandfunk, Prof. Hoff not only strengthens the visibility of care policy challenges, but also underlines the practical and socially relevant work of the GAT Institute. The institute has been working for years to improve the scientific basis and recognition of informal care in Germany.
