Health ministry holds emergency talks with umbrella organisations and National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM)
The Federation of Medical Specialists (FMS) has said that it wants to take no risks. But WHO studies show that COVID-19 has little impact on young people up to the age of 20, and that they play a very limited role in spreading the virus. For this reason, doctors in the RIVM Outbreak Management Team (OMT) have said that there is no need to close the schools.
We have great respect for the teachers and school management teams that are helping us pull through in these challenging times.
The doctors in the OMT are also medical specialists. Taking no risks would entail bringing the country to a standstill and it is essential that children should continue to receive an education. Keeping children at home would have a huge impact on many crucial sectors, including healthcare.
The government is taking medical specialists’ concerns seriously. At 14.00 tomorrow, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport will be holding talks with the Federation of Medical Specialists (FMS), the Netherlands Federation of University Medical Centres (NFU), the Dutch Hospitals Association (NVZ) and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). The ministry hopes that a consensus can be reached. The government will also be talking to the education councils tomorrow. Updates will follow in the course of the day.