Chaos in personal care budgets to continue for months

doctor euros healthcare costThe chaos in the administration of the personal budget to buy-in healthcare (PGB) is set to continue for months.

According to an emergency plan announced on Tuesday by junior health minister Martin van Rijn, the many problems in the computer system will have to be resolved one by one. In addition, councils and health insurers must provide additional staff to undertake such tasks as recovering money where too much has been paid out.

The budget for PGBs, which is around €2.5bn a year, is now administered by councils and health insurance companies and paid out by the Social Insurance Bank. The money goes to the health providers rather than directly into patients’ bank accounts. However, the complexity of administering 200,000 PGBs was underestimated and several log jams have formed.

Van Rijn’s plan also includes measures to combat fraud among people claiming a PGB. In January, the Telegraaf reported that officials had visited 30,000 households claiming a PGB over the past two years and found potential fraud involved in 7% of cases.

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