Sophie HermansMinister of Health, Welfare and Sport
Born on 1 May 1981 in Nijmegen, partner
Party: People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD)
The Netherlands has a healthcare system to be proud of, with professionals working day and night to care for people and make them better. I want that same quality of care for our children and grandchildren. Achieving this means we will have to make difficult choices in the period ahead, and invest in prevention. By working together with patients, professionals and the wider healthcare community, we will deliver care you can count on.
Medical care (including GP care, hospital care, dental care, emergency care)
Health Insurance Act (appropriate care, the basic health insurance package, excess and healthcare benefit)
Medical devices and medicines
Pregnancy and childbirth
Women’s health
Infectious diseases policy
Health protection (food and product safety)
Resilient healthcare
Health promotion, healthy lifestyles and prevention (including vaccination and population screening programmes)
Municipal health services (implementation of the national vaccination programme, child health services and sexual health)
Mental health, mental healthcare (under the Health Insurance Act) and suicide prevention
Drug prevention (including the controlled cannabis supply chain experiment)
Addiction care
Medical ethical issues
Coordination of the COVID-19 accountability process within VWS and across central government
Ministry management, including financial management
23 February 2026
Appointed Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the Jetten government
2 July 2024 – 23 February 2026
Minister of Climate Policy and Green Growth and Deputy Prime Minister in the Schoof government
March 2017 – 2 July 2024
Member of the House of Representatives for the VVD; party spokesperson on healthcare (2017-2019), deputy parliamentary party leader (May 2020 – March 2021) and (acting) parliamentary party leader (March 2021 – July 2024)
January 2015 – March 2017
Political assistant to the prime minister
November 2012 – January 2015
Political assistant to the Minister for Housing and the Central Government Sector
May 2011 – November 2012
Project manager, De Publieke Zaak
September 2006 – April 2011
Adviser/senior adviser, Andersson Elffers Felic (AEF), Utrecht
2013
Economics for policymakers, National Academy for Finance and Economics, The Hague
2008
Emerging Leaders Programme, London Business School, United Kingdom
2006
International relations and economics, San Francisco State University, United States
2000 – 2006
MSc in Political Science (public administration), University of Amsterdam
