More prenatal surgery options being considered

Minister Edith Schippers of Public Health is researching whether babies with spina bifida (an open spine) can be operated on before birth in the Netherlands. Currently parents have to travel to Belgium for such an operation. According to the Nederlands Dagblad (NL), Schippers is also investigating whether the operations can be reimbursed. Due to the fact that the prenatal surgery of spina bifida is not a standard treatment, parents have to pay for it themselves or hope for goodwill from their health insurance. During the care debate in the Second Chamber this week, the SGP fraction will insist that prenatal operation be recorded as a standard treatment, so that parents do not refrain from it for financial reasons. Spina bifida is diagnosed in 60 to 70 babies each year in the Netherlands.