Crutches, zimmer frames and rollators should no longer be covered in the basic health insurance package, the health insurance board CVZ says in its latest recommendations on health coverage. In addition, sleeping pills and medicine for people suffering from anxiety should only be covered for patients with chronic problems, the CVZ says.

But physiotherapy for incontinence problems and some forms of stem cell transplants should be included from now on, the board recommends. It also suggests that the government promote an umbilical cord blood bank.
Some 42,000 people have some sort of rollator, two-thirds of whom are aged over 75, the Volkskrant says. The CVZ says walking aids are widely available and a fact of life for many people – like reading glasses – and therefore no longer qualify for inclusion.
Patients organisation NPCF told the Volkskrant the board was too focused on costs rather than the quality of treatment. And the health insurers organisation ZN said the board was hindering competition between insurers by setting down exactly what everyone should cover in their basic policies.