2024-01-01 05:00:00
Certain medications for children with cancer reimbursed
Around fifty medications for children with cancer which have not been reimbursed until now will be reimbursed from January 1. According to the office of Minister of Health Frank Vandenbroucke (Vooruit), an initial budget of 3.2 million euros is planned for this purpose.
The drugs in question are called “off label” because the pharmaceutical industry is not motivated to make the necessary developments to have their use in children recognized. Consequently, many children with cancer encountered difficulties in accessing certain essential medicines, although they were part of the standard treatment protocol, since they were not reimbursed.
According to KickCancer, a foundation whose mission is to cure all children suffering from this disease, each year, approximately one child in 4 suffering from cancer in Belgium is affected by non-reimbursement of their medications. According to an agreement concluded at the end of December and which comes into force in January, a steering committee will meet annually to monitor this reimbursement, which will allow oncologists and patients to possibly complete this list of medications.
Dentist fees
From January 1, the fees of approved dentists will be indexed by 6.05% under the 2024-2025 dento-mutualist agreement concluded in mid-December. Depending on inflation, the prices of several dental treatments will be increased but reimbursements will follow the same trend. Patients treated by an approved dentist will therefore not see the difference.
Contracted dentists will be able to charge more for extractions (the price of which increases from 45 to 65 euros), subgingival scaling (which becomes twice as expensive and increases to 96 euros). However, the reimbursement may increase from 38 euros to 58 euros from January 1. The patient’s share, which was 7 euros in 2023, will remain at 7 euros in 2024 and 2025. The patient’s share is therefore not indexed. And it should be noted that “BIM” patients (beneficiaries of the increased intervention) have a full reimbursement, since their co-payment is equal to zero.
The dento-mutualist agreement applies for a period of two years and sets, among other things, the rates that contracted dentists can apply. The agreement of many dentists guarantees price security for patients.
New care pathway to help diabetic patients
A new “diabetes start journey” will come into force from January 1st. This should allow all affected people to be supported in an affordable manner by a multidisciplinary care team operating around the general practitioner.
As part of this, all people with type 2 diabetes – who are not already participating in a specialist diabetes care pathway – will be entitled to four free diabetes education sessions per year, as well as two free visits at the dietitian. People with an increased risk for their feet will also be entitled to two free visits to the podiatrist.
In addition, the annual preventive oral examination will be fully reimbursed for all people with diabetes without exception, regardless of the care pathway they follow. Some 250,000 people should benefit from this care route, according to estimates from the Federal Minister of Health.
Long-term illness
Employees and self-employed workers who are long-term sick will have to, during the first year of incapacity, go to their mutual insurance doctor three times to undergo a physical check-up. The measure comes into force on January 1, 2024.
Long-term sick workers will therefore have to have a physical meeting with the mutual insurance company following 4, 7 and 11 months of incapacity. These appointments will remain obligatory, even following 12 months and when the person is officially considered to be long-term ill.
Recovery of sick leave days
From January 1, 2024, workers who become unable to work during an annual vacation period will be able to keep their vacation days to take them later.
This new legislation aims to modify Belgian regulations in order to bring them into compliance with the European working time directive, which grants all workers paid annual vacation of at least four weeks. Concretely, from next year, sick days that occur during vacations can no longer be counted as annual leave. The same will apply to days of absence linked to a possible accident.
However, some rules must be respected: in the event of illness or accident, the worker must quickly contact his employer, provide him with a medical certificate and, if he is not at home, notify him of his place of residence. However, the holidays will not be automatically extended. Recovery of lost days may take place at a later date. The worker will retain the right to guaranteed wages for days of incapacity for work coinciding with vacations.
January 1st new year
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