Formalization of informal care in the Netherlands

In order to contain public care expenditure, policy makers in the Netherlands have over the last decades formulated in ever more stringent ways what ought to be expected from spouses, partners and family members with regard to care for dependent relatives. The current Dutch coalition cabinet plans to shift the principal responsibility for non-medical care, including demanding forms of care such as long-term personal care, to individuals and families. I argue that these policy developments imply cost redistribution rather than cost containment and that this redistribution is disadvantageous for women.

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