Rules for paramedical recovery care
- You need a referral from your GP or medical specialist.
- You must request the referral within six months after the acute phase of the disease has passed. For example, did you suffer from fever and were you coughing during the first three weeks of illness? The six-month period will start after those first three weeks.
- Did you get a referral? You need to make an appointment for recovery care within one month.
- Recovery care will last for a maximum of six month. Sometimes you will receive additional recovery care.
- You take part in medical research.
Go to the website of the National Healthcare Institute for more information about the recovery care scheme and the rules the scheme is subjected to (Dutch only).
Not entitled to receive paramedical recovery care?
Your basic health insurance policy will cover normal care: speech therapy, 10 hours of occupational therapy and 3 hours of dietary advice. If you have taken out supplementary health insurance for physiotherapy for example, those costs will be covered by your supplementary insurance.
It is important to mention that you are suffering from ‘residual corona symptoms’. Furthermore, we recommend you to ask your health insurance company whether they have contracted this therapist.
Additional recovery care
Any additional recovery care treatments should start within four months after the first period of recovery care treatments has finished. Otherwise, the results of the first six months of treatment lose their effect.
In the following situations you may be entitled to receive additional recovery care with a referral from your GP or medical specialist:
- If you haven’t been capable of work during the first months of the paramedical recovery care program due to the severe impact of COVID-19 or any (necessary treatments for) other symptoms. As a result, there hasn’t been enough time for proper recovery care.
- If you suffer a setback after a period of speedy recovery, partly negating earlier recovery.
- If, well after the treatment program of a practitioner (usually a physiotherapist or exercise therapist) has ended, you need to visit a second or third practitioner. In some cases, such second or third practitioner is consulted, but time is too short for an adequate treatment program. In other cases, you don’t get to consult a second or third practitioner before the end of the paramedical recovery care treatment period of six months.
Frequently asked questions
Did you get infected after August 2020, but you didn’t get a referral or reimbursement, because you were too late in requesting paramedical recovery care? Or because you need more treatments than the standard number of treatments covered under the insurance?
Please contact us. One of our colleagues will contact you and assess the options. Your report will also help us improve the rules regarding paramedical recovery care. We are collecting all reports to be able to provide the National Healthcare Institute and other organizations with appropriate advice.
A temporary scheme has been set up for people who are suffering from long-term corona symptoms: the paramedical recovery care scheme. Under this scheme, paramedical recovery care is covered by your basic health insurance policy. You do however have to pay the deductible excess. This paramedical recovery care may consist of physiotherapy, exercise therapy, occupational therapy, dietary therapy and speech therapy. However, the scheme is subjected to a number of rules:
- You need a referral from your GP or medical specialist.
- You must request the referral within six months after the acute phase of the disease has passed. For example, did you suffer from fever and were you coughing during the first three weeks of illness? The six-month period will start after those first three weeks.
- Did you get a referral? You need to make an appointment for recovery care within one month.
- Recovery care will last for a maximum of six month. Sometimes you will receive additional recovery care.
- You take part in medical research.
Go to the website of the National Healthcare Institute for more information about the recovery care scheme and the rules the scheme is subjected to (Dutch only).
No, we cannot help you with any (additional) physiotherapeutic treatments or other paramedical recovery care. We can only give you advise regarding the various options. You can only request a referral for paramedical recovery care from your GP or medical specialist. Contact your health insurance company for more information about the treatments. Please note! Paramedical recovery care is subjected to a number of rules. Go to the website of the National Healthcare Institute for more information (Dutch only).
