Organogram of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport: Directorate-General for Long-Term Care

Departments

• Long-Term Care Department (DLZ)
• Social Support Department (DMO)
• Health Insurance Department (Z)
• Youth Department (J)

Long-Term Care Department (DLZ)

Director: Theo van Uum

Tasks

The Long-Term Care Department is responsible for providing an effective system of care for people with chronic limitations resulting from permanent physical, intellectual or mental health conditions. Its main objectives are to ensure:

• the quality of care services by:
  • facilitating high-quality programmes and knowledge policy;
  • encouraging and facilitating innovation/e-health;
  • making administrative agreements with sector partners;
• the accessibility of care services, by:
  • providing an effective needs assessment system;
  • providing scope for patient fundholding (personal budget);
  • encouraging providers to devise sufficient initiatives;
• the efficiency of care services, through deployment of administrative and financial instruments to control long-term care expenditure.

Divisions

• Management, Financing and Information (SFI)
• Quality of Healthcare Institutions (KZ)
• Accessibility (T)
• Financial Advice and Policy Support (FAB)

Social Support Department (DMO)

Director: Maartje Roelofs

Tasks

Social support entails promoting social participation. It comprises

• support for informal care and voluntary work;
• improving access to care;
• support for those who cannot participate in society entirely independently.

The department is not the only player in this field. Quite the reverse, the municipalities often occupy a central position in this respect and direct efforts. Institutions and civil society organisations are often responsible for organising social support activities and services and ensuring their quality.

The department's mission is couched in the following terms:

Citizens participate in society on the basis of their own responsibility and capacity. Where they are unable to do so, municipalities and parties in the field provide support aimed at enabling citizens to participate optimally and for as long as possible in society. It is the department's task to enable municipalities and parties in the field to provide more effective and efficient forms of support.

Teams

• Team A: Department secretariat
• Team B: Functioning system, Legal affairs and Financial management
• Team C: Cooperation, Access and Professional Development (STP), Accessibility for people with a disability (CRPD), and Systems thinking
• Team D: Social support facilities, Assisted living, Homelessness strategy, Violence in dependency situations and Communication
• Team E: Social basis, United against loneliness, War victims and commemoration of Second World War

Health Insurance Department (Z)

Director: Kjille Lammertsma

Tasks

The Health Insurance Department formulates policy on the health insurance system. It concerns itself mainly with the system's coherence, its financing, and the nature and volume of patients' entitlements.

Groups

• Risk adjustment
• Package management
• Copayments
• Insurance market
• Insured persons
• Procurement of care 
• International
• Accountholder for the CAK (central office for exceptional medical insurance) and the Healthcare Institute of the Netherlands
• Finance and Operational Management Support Group
• Prevention
• Right Care, Right Place

Youth Department

Director: Marieke Kleiboer

Tasks

The Youth Department is responsible for the system of youth care and prevention as laid down in the Youth Act. Under the Act, municipalities have administrative and financial responsibility for providing youth care services.

Key topics

• Quality of youth care services: supporting a professional development programme for youth workers, promoting the use of evidence-based and innovative interventions, encouraging sensitive and appropriate care, linking up youth care and education, and strengthening clients’ position.
• Administrative and financial aspects of the youth care system: supporting municipalities, distributing funds to municipalities, implementing certain grant schemes (e.g. grants for boarding schools for children of occupational travellers, system transition grant scheme).
• Social participation of young people and prevention: child rights, youth participation and child-rearing issues in connection with, for instance, modern media.
• Risk groups: tackling child abuse and providing support for victims of romeo pimps have priority.
• Knowledge policy and international cooperation: publication of the Youth Monitor, a database of information on the situation of young people and the uptake of youth care.