Health law governs issues such as the rights of patients and care providers and the quality of care, with a focus on care provided by medical and specialised care institutions. Our firm has expert healthcare lawyers who focus on this area of law. Health law also intersects with other legal domains, such as healthcare criminal law.
In the Netherlands, healthcare is subsidised by the national government through the Health Insurance Act (Zorgverzekeringswet) and other statutory frameworks. Other key Dutch legislation relating to healthcare funding includes:
– the Exceptional Medical Expenses Act (Algemene wet bijzondere ziektekosten);
– the Social Support Act (Wet maatschappelijke ondersteuning);
– the Healthcare Charges Act (Wet tarieven gezondheidszorg);
– the Medicine Prices Act (Wet op de geneesmiddelenprijzen).
The government has also laid down a number of laws specifically to safeguard the quality of healthcare. The most important of these are:
– the Individual Health Care Professions Act (Wet op de beroepen in de individuele gezondheidszorg);
– the Care Institutions (Quality) Act (Kwaliteitswet zorginstellingen);
– the Clients’ Right of Complaint (Care Sector) Act (Wet klachtrecht cliënten zorgsector);
– the Medical Treatment Contracts Act (Wet op de geneeskundige behandelingsovereenkomst );
– the Medicines Act (Geneesmiddelenwet).
As a law firm with a specialisation in healthcare, we work closely with professionals at care and medical institutions on a daily basis. Lawyers in our healthcare team are also members of the VGR association for health law.
Our connections with the healthcare sector give us insight into these specific laws and regulations, with an experienced team that can advise you on complex issues in this field. Ethical regulations also play an major role in healthcare and receive special attention at our firm. For medical and care institutions in the Netherlands, the Dutch Care Authority (NZa), which sets rates for the sector and oversees healthcare providers and insurers, is also an important player.
The duties of the Dutch Care Authority are laid down in the Health Care (Market Regulation) Act (Wet marktordening gezondheidszorg).