The minister believes that too little is known about complaints that persist for a long time after a corona infection.
The released millions will be spent in the period up to and including 2026. Part of the money will be invested in a research program that research financier ZonMw is setting up. The aim is to find out more about persistent complaints after people have been infected with the corona virus.
ZonMw is currently still inventorying which knowledge is lacking, which therefore requires additional research.
Kuipers has also asked ZonMw to set up an expertise network. This should ensure that knowledge about long-term covid is better exchanged between researchers and other professionals who deal with this. The C-support network and the Dutch Federation of University Medical Centers (NFU) are also helping to implement this plan.
No national registration
The minister has previously stated that he is against a national registration of people with long-term covid. That is difficult because there is no clear definition of long-term covid, Kuipers said during a debate in May. He sees it as an extra burden on GPs who are already busy, the minister said. The Social Impact Team (MIT) believes that this can be very valuable.