Health minister Ab Klink does not plan to increase the current €155 own-risk charge attached to all health insurance policies next year, the Telegraaf reports on Friday.

The minister is currently working out ways to cut health service spending but an increase is ‘not yet on the cards’, he told MPs on Thursday.
So far the focus is on cutting spending on medicine by encouraging the use of generic drugs – medicines on which the patent has expired – and reducing payments to specialists.
Other options include cutting provisions in the basic health insurance package, such as medicines for stomach acid problems, and introducing a ‘fine’ for people using accident and emergency departments without a doctor’s referral.
Although health insurance in the Netherlands is provided by private companies, the government dictates what should be in the standard package.