Surprise bills from healthcare providers a common nasty surprise for Dutch patients

Patients are too often surprised by healthcare bills they have to pay themselves because their insurance does not cover the healthcare provider, the Dutch Patient Federation found in a study. According to the interest group, healthcare providers must inform patients that they don’t have a contract with their insurer before starting treatment, AD reports.

The Patient Federation surveyed 12,000 people. The sample is not representative because the respondents use relatively more healthcare than the average Netherlands residents. Over 10 percent of patients received a bill for treatment in the past three years because they ended up with care providers who do not have a contract with the relevant patient’s health insurer. Half said they did not know this before treatment.

“The average citizen has no idea that not all healthcare providers have a contract with the insurer. They cut down on health insurance but don’t realize that it will also mean less reimbursement,” Dianda Veldman, director of the Patient Federation, told the newspaper.

Policies that reimburse care from all healthcare providers are increasingly disappearing, according to figures from Vektis. Consumers are also increasingly looking to save money on health insurance, so they pick cheaper policies that often cover fewer providers. But unexpected bills can make cheaper policies more expensive. Most of the patients the Patient Federation surveyed ended up paying between 100 and 500 euros because their insurance didn’t cover a healthcare provider.

Patients are supposed to check whether their insurance covers a provider before treatment, but that doesn’t always happen. According to the Patient Federation, patients often end up with an uncovered treatment center or doctor through referral and then don’t think to check.

“We don’t think that’s their own fault. People should be made more aware that they are not always reimbursed for care,” Veldman said to the newspaper. The survey showed that patients often find it challenging to find the correct information. “It is much too complicated. That should be easier.”
Healthcare providers can also warn patients if they don’t have a contract with their insurer, according to the Patient Federation. “Care providers simply start the care, knowing that they do not have a contract with all health insurers. It shouldn’t be like that.”