News item | 16-12-2024 | 15:01
Minister Agema (Public Health, Welfare and Sport) has appointed the board of the Healthcare Fraud Information Exchange Foundation (IKZ). The IKZ plays an important role in tackling healthcare fraud, because they enable better data sharing. The IKZ collects signals of fraud from various authorities, supplements this with information and provides it to healthcare purchasers, supervisors and investigative services. This strengthens the information position of these agencies and allows them to conduct better fraud investigations. In addition, the IKZ identifies relevant trends and developments for tackling healthcare fraud.
Minister Agema: It is a shame if public money is misused and patients suffer as a result. It is therefore important that healthcare purchasers, regulators and investigative services do everything we can to tackle healthcare fraud. The foundation plays a key role in tackling healthcare fraud by enabling better data sharing between these parties involved.
Members of the Board of Directors
Melanie van den Berg will become chairman of the foundation’s Board of Directors and will be responsible for daily management. As a healthcare manager at Erasmus MC, she has, among other things, strengthened risk management and regulations. She has gained her experience in various sectors, including the financial sector. She also provides various training courses in the field of fraud.
Juliëtte van Doorn is a board member of the foundation. As an independent advisor, she specializes in the field of integrity and behavioral risk management. She has a background in (supervision in) the healthcare, media and financial sectors.
Eugène van Mierlo is a board member of the foundation. Van Mierlo has been an alderman in the municipality of Almelo since 2018 and a regional portfolio holder for tackling healthcare fraud in Twente. With the support of the government, Twente, within the national Testing Ground for Combating Healthcare Fraud, is developing methods together with the Hart van Brabant region and the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG) to most effectively tackle healthcare fraud.
Tackling healthcare fraud
The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport works closely with parties to tackle fraud in healthcare. There is a large package of policies and measures. One of the measures concerns solving bottlenecks in data sharing with the Promotion of Cooperation and Legitimate Care Act (Wbsrz). This law will come into effect on January 1, 2025. With the arrival of the IKZ Foundation, this law improves the exchange of data between the various parties. In addition, this law makes it possible for health insurers, healthcare offices and municipalities to warn each other about fraudsters in healthcare by registering them in the Warning Register. This allows them to better combat fraud and better control healthcare purchasing.