The Chamber argues today again with Secretary Martin van Rijn (PvdA) about the problems with the personal budget (PGB). For the sixth time. Because the problems are not yet solved. How was again and Van Rijn survives the debate? The most important things in a row.
1. What about again with the PGB
Since early this year, the Social Insurance Bank (SVB) – operating under the responsibility of two ministries – the agency which pays personal budgets for chronically ill, disabled and elderly buy their own help. 200,000 Dutch use the PGB scheme. The centralization of the payments was intended to combat fraud. From the beginning, however, was chaos in the execution: many caregivers were months late, or not paid.
The Chamber gave Van Rijn until May 15 the time to address the problems with the PGB, but which at that time were not over. However, Van Rijn said that now 95 percent of all aid workers for whom the declarations “correct” submitted on time would be paid by the SVB. But one of the big problems with the PGBs is true that the new declaration system so complicated that good claim for long-term sick and disabled has become very difficult. There are many agencies involved; systems are not compatible.
How many invoices are not filed correctly, for example, is unknown. In fact, it is therefore unknown how many rescuers have not yet paid. Nor is it clear whether the aid workers are well paid the correct amount get transferred.
2. How will the parties involved with the situation?
has SVB, reported Het Financieele Dagblad this week approved some 60,000 PGBs without controlling them. It was commissioned by State Secretary Van Rijn, so the money could be transferred directly to a personal budget holders or caregivers. The SVB’s applications afterwards keys legitimacy. If an application is not correct and there is too much paid personal budget holders involved will be asked to pay back the money. If they can not meet it threatens a hole in the budget of municipalities and insurers. SVB fears new unrest indicates that people have to pay money back. It is also an enormous effort to control the applications.
Photo ANP / Roos Koole
Many municipalities now have taken matters into their own hands. NRC revealed yesterday that certainly seventeen municipalities themselves have PGBs advanced to avoid sick people and aid workers are in serious trouble. Another seven municipalities have previously made an emergency precaution. It concerns both large and small communities across the country. Some municipalities pay patients directly, other caregiver.
3. Van Rijn’s position
The Minister must answer today for the sixth time in the Chamber for the surrounding PGB chaos. And though especially the opposition has strongly criticized the state of affairs in the dossier, Van Rijn seems to survive today’s debate. He previously took the view that the support of the opposition was rough for him to implement his health care reforms with sufficient authority, but in the coalition and in the vicinity of Van Rijn is now admitted that he has revised his position: he is planning to continue when the entire opposition would support a motion of no confidence against him, our political editor Tom-Jan Meeus wrote yesterday in NRC.
Although Van Rijn debate very likely survives, he can still get damaged from the debate on the confidence motion. The problems of Van Rijn be strengthened by the collapse of the “C3″ (D66, CU SGP), the opposition parties that the budget of the coalition supported the recent years, says Meeus:
This D66 feels not the slightest obstacle more to seek confrontation with the government. Where they emphasize that the party D66 is purely driven by concerns about the PGB file, they scorn the coalition which Pechtold would want to fight his loss of political relevance.
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