District assembly secures future of Kreiskliniken Dillingen-Wertingen gGmbH – important milestone under municipal ownership

A long-term funding guarantee has been secured for Kreiskliniken Dillingen-Wertingen gGmbH: the Dillingen an der Donau district assembly met today and unanimously approved the financing commitment for the years 2026 and 2027. The hospital board had already unanimously voted in the past week to recommend that the district assembly approve the financing. This decision marks a major milestone in the ongoing protective shield proceedings and increases the prospects of a successful restructuring.

The outcome also underscores the district’s special responsibility as a municipal provider and reaffirms its clear commitment to close-to-home, high-quality medical care. It safeguards the provision of inpatient services at the hospitals in Dillingen and Wertingen as well as outpatient offerings and the strong regional network.

In the meantime, the hospitals in Dillingen und Wertingen have positioned themselves for the future. They play an integral role in the provision of public services – in addition to inpatient medical treatment, they provide outpatient medical care via the Medizinisches Versorgungszentrum DLG MVZ gGmbH healthcare centre. The basic and standard care hospital in Dillingen is home to key areas such as the emergency department, intensive care unit, general, visceral, trauma, vascular, thoracic and other surgery, orthopaedics, internal medicine and a women’s clinic with obstetrics. Taking account of demographic change, the focus in Wertingen is on geriatric medicine with geriatric and internal medicine departments. Going forward, the geriatric rehabilitation services should ideally complement the inpatient, outpatient and rehabilitative care spectrum. The decision also means both hospitals in Dillingen and Wertingen will remain reliable healthcare pillars for the region.

“The debt relief and complete financing package resolutions adopted today are of crucial importance. They signal a fresh start to employees and the citizens of this district. The Ministry of Health supports the medical concept we have developed for the northern Swabian care region. We now have to continue to implement this with the responsibility and cooperation of all stakeholders. The objective of all our efforts has been and remains ensuring medical care for the people in the district in conjunction with the hospital reform,” emphasised district administrator Mr Markus Müller.

Managing director Ms Sonja Greschner and chief restructuring officer Dr Maximilian Pluta gave the members of the district assembly detailed information on the progress made in the hospitals’ protective shield proceedings. Specifically, they addressed the implementation of the 2025 medical concept and provided updates on the in-court restructuring proceedings and the revenue and liquidity planning for the next two years.

With financing now confirmed, the ongoing provision of medical care for the district’s citizens is ensured. At the same time, the hospitals have the certainty they need to carry the initiated restructuring process forward consistently.

Chief restructuring officer Dr Maximilian Pluta said, “We are on the right track in the restructuring proceedings and have achieved important milestones. The complete financing package for the next two years is crucial for further progress in the proceedings. We welcome the district assembly’s support for the course embarked upon.” The positive vote marks another important milestone in successfully advancing the process of consolidation and further development. In addition to Dr Maximilian Pluta, the PLUTA restructuring team is comprised of business management expert Mr Ludwig Stern, attorneys Mr Florian Zistler, Mr Markus Fünning, Mr Daniel Barth and Mr Peter Roeger, business lawyers Mr Dennis Stroh and Ms Celine Plaschke as well as Mr Julius von Baumbach.

Now that the financing commitment is in place, the PLUTA team can work over the coming weeks to finalise the insolvency plan, which will be put to the creditors’ vote at a discussion and voting meeting later this year. If everything goes according to plan, the hospitals will be able to operate independently again from 2026.

Managing director Ms Sonja Greschner feels optimistic: “We wholeheartedly welcome this decision. It clearly signals the importance of healthcare in our district and gives our staff, patients and partners stability, trust and confidence. We are grateful to the various bodies for this clear commitment and see this as an important milestone towards a stable future for the hospitals in the district. This means we can now give our full attention to the next steps in the restructuring process, with the clear message that we will continue to provide high-quality services for our patients.”

Professor Dr Martin Hörmann from law firm Anchor, in his capacity as court-appointed insolvency monitor, said, “The cooperation during the proceedings has been smooth and efficient. All involved recognise their responsibility. The creditors also support the course taken by the hospitals.” Protective shield proceedings with debtor-in-possession management are aimed at restructuring and preserving financially distressed companies. Management remains in charge and guides the company through the restructuring process under its own control, supervised by an insolvency monitor and supported by experienced restructuring experts.