NB National schemes for financing vary from country to country. The situation in The Netherlands is included as an example of how it works in one country. Readers should seek advice about their own national provisions.

Epidermolysis Bullosa is a complex disorder. The treatment and care of patients with EB often requires a lot of materials such as ointments and creams, dressing materials, aids / adaptations / provisions and special food.

In general the reimbursement for the costs incurred on ointments and creams, dressing materials, and special (dietary) food products does not cause any problems. In principle, the costs are reimbursed by the patient's health insurer. The stipulating condition for this is that the materials concerned have been prescribed by the patient's doctor in attendance:

• Medicines (such as ointments and creams) and dressing

materials are reimbursed according to the Health Care Insurance Law (Regulation Pharmaceutical Help 1996) and the Uniform Regulation Medicines Dutch Health Insurers 1997 (for privately insured patients). For medicines, the Medicine Reimbursement System (GVS) that is included in the Regulation applies. The doctor in attendance may, perhaps in consultation with the pharmacist, check whether the medicine will be reimbursed. In a case of doubt about this, the patient's health insurer might be contacted.

• Supplementary preparations (among which supplementary and exclusively liquid food and tube feeding) in principle only qualify for reimbursement when it concerns supplementary preparations that are described in Health Care Insurance Law (Regulation Pharmaceutical Help 1996) and the Uniform Regulation Supplementary Preparations Dutch Health Insurers 1997 (for privately insured patients). More detailed information (for example, about the relevant benefits) may be obtained from the KITTZ home care programme Tube Feeding.

This chapter deals with reimbursement possibilities of costs which have been made on aids / adaptations / provisions.

The reimbursement of aids / adaptations / provisions is not always clear. Health insurers and local councils often have little experience with the disease EB and there are no separate rules described for it.

Before filing an application for a benefit it might be advisable to ask fellow sufferers about their experiences with applications for reimbursement of an aid / adaptation / provision.

The next module describes which provisions are available and what conditions, regulations and procedure apply to qualify for the reimbursement.