![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Depositphotos_cigarettes_S.jpg\")
Photo: Depositphotos<\/p>\n January 13, 2026 Photo: Depositphotos<\/p>\n
Health insurers will pay for smokers to make three attempts to quit under new guidelines that came into force on January 1.<\/p>\n
Figures show that smokers who join a support programme are six times more likely to stay off cigarettes for a year \u2013 24% rather than 4%. For those that sign up for the most intensive programmes the success rate is three in 10.<\/p>\n
Anti-smoking campaigners and doctors hope that expanding the compensation to three tries per year will increase the chances that people will quit permanently.<\/p>\n
Although the number of smokers has steadily declined over the last 35 years, 18% of the population still smokes and the proportion rises to 30% for people with the lowest level of education.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you consider that it takes six attempts on average for someone to stop for good, it\u2019s good if they can do it three times a year,\u201d lung specialist Wanda de Kanter told NRC<\/a>.<\/p>\n A stop smoking course costs around \u20ac400, but this is vastly outweighed by the potential savings to the healthcare system, campaigners argue.<\/p>\n Cancer diagnosis<\/p>\n The cancer research institute IKNL has calculated that 120,000 diagnoses of lung, bladder and oesophageal cancer could be saved if the smoking rate is cut to 5% of the population by 2032.<\/p>\n If nobody smoked, it would save \u20ac2.4 billion in medical costs, including medicines and operations to treat damaged arteries. There would also be fewer amputations and heart bypass procedures caused by circulation problems.<\/p>\n \u201cMotivation is everything,\u201d quitting coach Pauline Hasbroek told NRC. \u201cIf they want to stop in August and they have to wait until January because that\u2019s the next time they can claim for an attempt, there\u2019s a chance they won\u2019t want to by then.\u201d<\/p>\n Not smoking also has financial benefits, with the average packet of cigarettes costing \u20ac11.10, but doctors admit that people are less likely to quit if they have to pay for support programmes out of their own pocket.<\/p>\n Joris Dullaert, who runs WeQuit, a network of psychologists who support smokers who want to stop, said: \u201cSometimes I think: you save so much on cigarettes, surely you can find that \u20ac400? But people pay insurance premiums and expect their insurance to cover it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Health<\/a> Smoking<\/a> Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.<\/p>\n We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.<\/p>\n