‘Abolishing the deductible is expensive and does not help people with small budgets’ | Economy

This is what ABN Amro says in a study into the consequences of abolishing the deductible of 385 euros per year. Abolition will cost 3.3 billion euros per year. That amount must be coughed up by the premium payers. “That means that the premium will increase by about 300 euros per year,” said Anja van Balen, Healthcare sector banker at ABN Amro.

In addition, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) warns that abolishing the deductible will create an additional demand for care of 2.7 billion euros per year. In total, this makes healthcare 6 billion euros more expensive, of which 4.6 billion euros will be borne by the premium payer and 1.4 billion by the government.

Van Balen believes that one should not look to the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport for a solution to the problem. “In fact, avoiding care is a poverty problem and that belongs to the Ministry of Social Affairs. The deductible is especially a problem for people on a tight budget.”

Van Balen thinks that increasing benefits works better. “Increase it by the amount of the deductible. People can then use the budget to pay the deductible. If they don’t need care, they can spend the money on other necessary things.”

The Netherlands has approximately 5.1 million people on benefits. Compensating for this costs the government two billion euros per year. If the demand for care increases by 2.7 billion euros, the premium will increase by 93 euros per year, Van Balen calculated.

But it could be even better, Van Balen thinks. If the demand for care only increases among people who previously avoided care due to a lack of money, expenditure is expected to increase by around 900 million. The premium increase then amounts to a few euros per month. “And that is a realistic scenario.”