Diederik Schrijvershof and Annabel Kingma successfully represented Stichting De Bevlogen Huisartsen ("DBH") and 129 general practitioners in an appeal before the Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal (CBb) regarding the Prestatie- en tariefbeschikking huisartsenzorg en multidisciplinaire zorg 2023 (“Tariff Decision”). Maverick Advocaten is cooperating with Piet Sippens of Groene Wegen in this matter.
Stichting De Bevlogen Huisartsen and the GPs had previously lodged an objection to the Tariff Decision on 29 July 2022, but the Dutch Healthcare Authority (NZa) declared the objection to be unfounded on 29 March 2023.
The CBb ruled that DBH's objection was well-founded. According to the CBb, the NZa had wrongly based the rates for general practitioners for 2023 on a cost study conducted by the NZa for the year 2015. When setting the rates for 2023 and 2024, the NZa should have investigated whether the rates were still covering the costs. This is because of developments in the sector and signals from GPs about higher costs. These developments include demographic developments (ageing population, multi-morbidity), care for mental health patients, a shift from secondary and tertiary care to primary care, increased administrative burdens and an increase in personnel and accommodation costs.
The NZa must conduct a new cost study or recalibrate the rates for 2023 and 2024 in a different way. This applies in any case to the cost elements of accommodation and personnel. The CBb even indicates that the NZa must compensate GPs financially for the damage suffered.
For more information on this case, see the NOS, the NOS journaal, NRC (2x), FD, NPO Radio 1, Trouw, and NU.nl.
Maverick Advocaten assists healthcare providers on a daily basis in achieving cost-covering rates in healthcare or in challenging inadequate (turnover) ceilings. For example, Maverick Advocaten is litigating on behalf of providers of (forensic) mental healthcare against the NZa Rate Decision for Mental Healthcare and Forensic Care 2023 and 2024.
Maverick Advocaten has previously achieved successes in (preliminary relief) proceedings for healthcare providers in the procurement of, among other things, general practitioner care, primary diagnostics, acute mental healthcare (here and here), forensic care, youth care, SGLVG care, Wlz care, also in appeal and here and here, and Wmo care (see also here). Maverick Advocaten also opposes abuses of the purchasing power of healthcare insurance companies, see also here.
For more information about the (enforcement of) the healthcare (procurement) obligation, see this blog, this blog and this interview in Zorgvisie. For more information about the rights of healthcare providers in the sales of healthcare and the possibilities for their trade associations to support them in this, see www.zorgcontractering.com.
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