AUSTRIA'S NEW CABINET: HEALTH MINISTER ALOIS

UNCLAS VIENNA 001856 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR EUR/CE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PINR PGOV TBIO AU SUBJECT: AUSTRIA'S NEW CABINET: HEALTH MINISTER ALOIS STOEGER ¶1. (U) The following is a biographic profile of new Minister for Health Affairs Alois Stoeger of the Social Democratic Party (SPO). Career -------------- ¶2. (U) A political newcomer, Stoeger came of age through unions and in running the Upper Austria State Health Insurance fund. His only prior political experience was on the city council of Gallneukirchen (a village in Upper Austria). ¶3. (U) Stoeger was born in 1961 in Allerheiligen, Upper Austria. After high school, he began as apprentice with the large steelmaker VOEST and worked later as a toolmaker and lathe operator. Stoeger took adult education courses, receiving a diploma from the Social Academy of the Austrian Workers Chamber and a correspondence degree from the Marc Bloch University Strasbourg for Social Practice. ¶4. (U) Stoeger rose through the union movement. In 1986 he became secretary of the union for mining energy and metallurgy and worked almost 20 years there. In that role, he was appointed to the boards of the Upper Austrian (government) insurance companies for mining (1995) and accidents (2002). In 2005, he was appointed head of the Upper Austrian State Health Insurance Company (note: in Austria it is not unusual for union representatives to hold leading positions in public insurance funds). Political/Economic Views -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Stoeger's Upper Austrian Health Insurance Company is the only Austrian social insurance institution that has not run deficits in the past three years, certainly a factor in his nomination as minister. However, he was a staunch opponent of the 2008 federal health reform plan and is regarded as a defender of state interests against the federal government. He opposes patient contributions to medical treatment and pharmaceuticals and holds that mandatory contributions by employers and employees should still finance most healthcare outlays, despite huge deficits in that system. ¶6. (SBU) We can expect Stoeger to fight pharmaceutical companies over pricing, particularly for innovative medicines. In early interviews as minister, he called for rebates and price rollbacks from the pharma industry, arguing that "price increases of 8% as in 2007 are not possible when the economy is not growing." He reproached drug makers for justifying price increases in terms of research while they plough money into advertising and public relations. PERSONAL -------------- ¶7. (U) Stoeger is divorced and has one daughter. He enjoys hiking and jogging. GIRARD-DICARLO