SP proposes scrapping deductible for healthcare after sexual violence

The SP wants people not to have to pay a deductible for medical care following sexual violence. Costs must not be a barrier to seeking medical help after rape, said MP Sarah Dobbe.

Dobbe has drafted an initiative memorandum containing proposals to improve care for victims of sexual violence. “If you have become a victim of rape, it is very painful if it is assumed that this should involve a deductible,” the MP wrote. “It should simply never happen that someone cannot receive a medical examination after being raped because it costs money. It makes me sick to my stomach that victims are confronted with this.”

According to Dobbe, approximately 1,600 people per year have to pay the healthcare deductible for this examination, which must be performed within seven days to secure evidence. Abolishing the deductible for this would cost €600,000, according to the SP parliamentarian.

Dobbe also wants to allocate more funding to the Center for Sexual Violence and expand the capacity of the vice squad. By providing that center with more funding, mental support for victims should become more accessible. According to the MP, expanding police capacity should lead to reports of sexual violence being handled more quickly. “Speed is especially important with these reports.”

“Of course, we must do everything possible to prevent people from becoming victims of sexual violence, but we see that this still happens to 100,000 people a year,” said Dobbe. Those people must be helped as well as possible, she believes.