A popular political proposal to eliminate the health insurance deductible in the Netherlands would cost each resident about 300 euros per year, said caretaker Health Minister Ernst Kuipers. The motion to cancel the own-cost portion of health insurance, known as eigen risico, would end up helping those who actively receive healthcare at the expense of those who do not, Kuipers wrote in a letter to parliament last week.
The much-discussed trial to test the legalization of cannabis cultivation will finally start on December 15 after years of preparations and delays. Coffeeshops will be supplied with cannabis from permitted growers in the trial, which has been postponed several times. The start-up phase will get underway in three months, the Cabinet confirmed on Friday. Details were submitted in a letter to Parliament written by two outgoing Cabinet members, Justice Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz and Health Minister Ernst Kuipers.
The financial management of the national government is still inadequate, with 10 of the 12 ministries rated as being insufficient in keeping their affairs in order last year, the Court of Audit wrote in its accountability audit on Wednesday. The audit is released annually to give insight into whether the government handles taxpayer money with due care. It found that the rapid changes to policy is among the most serious problems, the the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) is dealing with “structural weaknesses,” and the Ministry of Defense is facing many security issues.