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Chapter 8 | The impact of the crisis on the health system and health in the Netherlands
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Fig. 8.4 Breakdown of health care spending by sector in the Netherlands, in 2008 and 2012
2008 2012
16%
24%
4%
7%
4%
45%
Source: Statistics Netherlands, 2013b.
Curative care
Rehabilitation care
Long-term care
Pharmaceutical
care and aids
Prevention and
public health
Other
14%
4%
26%
7%
4%
46%
Fig. 8.5 Breakdown of health care spending by type of care in the Netherlands
in 2008 and 2012
2008 2012
34%
6%
8% 9%
25%
19%
Hospitals and specialist
medical care
Care for older people
Care for the disabled
Primary care
Mental care
Other
26%
31%
6%
20%
8% 10%
Source: Statistics Netherlands, 2013b.
5.3 Implementation challenges
The deterioration of the economic situation opened up public discussion on
fundamental questions, such as what is affordable health care, what should
be collectively financed and what are unnecessary treatments and processes
in health care. Dutch citizens seem to understand that all public sectors are
influenced by the crisis and that a better control of costs is necessary. In 2011,
a poll by the Netherlands Institute for Social Research showed that 60% of
respondents agreed or were neutral towards the statement that the government
is right in limiting the basic insurance package to control health care costs
(Netherlands Institute for Social Research, 2012).
To create support for the measures that were undertaken, the government
negotiated a number of agreements with key stakeholders in the sector (see
section 3.1). The most prominent is the 2013 Health Agreement with all sector