Mandatory listing of the BIG number as of April 1, 2019 is off the table in its current form. Following insistence by healthcare parties, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport will enter into consultations with the KNMG and other healthcare organizations to avoid unnecessary administrative burdens. VWS has also asked the Health Care and Youth Inspectorate (IGJ) not to maintain the regulation for the listing of the BIG number in its current form. These are the main points of a letter the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) sent to the Lower House on March 8.
The parliamentary letter is a response to the fire letter the KNMG sent to the minister, also on behalf of 15 healthcare organizations, regarding the introduction of mandatory listing of BIG numbers as of April 1, 2019.
With this change in the law, BIG-registered individuals will soon be required to state their registration number so that it is visible to patients. The BIG register provides clarity about the competence of a healthcare provider.
Misunderstanding
In the parliamentary letter, Minister Bruins further writes that due to a misunderstanding, healthcare parties were not involved in the further elaboration of the regulations as had been promised. He is annoyed that healthcare providers now feel caught off guard by the introduction and scope of the regulations.
Annoyance among health care providers
Earlier, the implementation of this mandatory entry caused great annoyance among health care providers. Unnecessary administrative burden, lack of trust and waste of costs were the most heard arguments. On the initiative of the KNMG, several healthcare organizations sent a letter to the ministry requestingadjustment of the measures and postponement of the implementation. These were the organizations KNMT, KNOV, KNMP, KNGF, V&VN, ANT, FGzPt, NAPA, as well as ActiZ, GGZ Nederland, NFU, NVZ and VGN united in the branch organizations Healthcare (BoZ) and OVAL, the branch organization of health and safety services.
This article can also be found in the files Privacy in the Workplace and Privacy in Healthcare
