Dutch to pay more for healthcare as insurers add restrictions, cut supplementary cover

Netherlands residents can expect to pay more for healthcare next year, and not just because of higher health insurance premiums. Nearly 60 percent of health insurance policies have restrictive conditions that could end up costing policyholders more. And many health insurers are cutting back on their supplementary cover options.

According to a study by the Zorgwijzer, 37 of the 64 basic health insurance policies will have one or more restrictive conditions next year. That is 58 percent of the insurance policies. Six policies had as many as four different restrictions.

“Restrictions range from a severely limited choice of contracted hospitals to low reimbursement for healthcare providers without a contract,” Zorgwijzer said. “There are also insurers that only have contracts with a limited number of suppliers for medical aids or enter into limited agreements with mental healthcare providers.”

That could lead to unexpected extra costs, for example, when a policyholder gets referred for an MRI at a hospital that does not have a contract with their health insurer. The policyholder is often responsible for a significant part of the costs.

“Many Dutch people choose health insurance based on price, without properly delving into the conditions,” Koen Kuiper of the Zorgwizjer said. That could lead to financial setbacks. He advocates for clearer and more proactive communication from health insurers about the financial consequences of the restrictions in their policies.

Another study by Overstappen.nl showed that many health insurers are reducing the reimbursement of their additional packages or even scrapping them completely next year. Between 2023 and 2024, 14 percent of the supplementary health insurance policies will disappear.

According to Overstappen.nl, the abolition of supplementary packages sometimes disguises a significant price increase - the old package disappears, and a new package with comparable coverage takes its place, but at a much higher price. The comparison site called it striking that pricier supplementary packages, in particular, disappeared this year. Of the 76 abolished packages, almost 30 percent had a premium of more than 25 euros.

Health insurers are also participating in shrinkflation, combining significant price increases with packages that offer lower reimbursements, Overstappen.nl said. For example, the reimbursement for hearing aids, physiotherapy, and skin therapy is becoming lower and lower while premiums continue to rise.

Eva van Erk, healthcare expert at Overstappen.nl, urged policyholders to think carefully before canceling a supplementary package. “Because once you cancel the old package, you cannot go back.”