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Ernst Kuipers

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Ernst Kuipers
Kuipers in 2022
Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport
In office
10 January 2022 – 10 January 2024
Prime MinisterMark Rutte
Preceded byHugo de Jonge
Succeeded byConny Helder
Chief Executive Officer of the
Erasmus University Medical Center
In office
15 March 2013 – January 2022
Preceded byHans Büller
Succeeded byStefan Sleijfer (ad interim)
Chairman of the
National Acute Care Network
In office
2015 – January 2022
Preceded byJos Aartsen [nl]
Personal details
Born
Ernst Johan Kuipers

(1959-12-14) 14 December 1959 (age 65)
Meppel, Netherlands
Political partyDemocrats 66
Children4
Alma materUniversity of Groningen
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Occupation

Ernst Johan Kuipers (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɛrnst ˈjoːɦɑŋ ˈkœypərs]; born 14 December 1959) is a Dutch gastroenterologist, professor and politician who served as Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the fourth Rutte cabinet from 2022 until 2024.[1] He is a member of the Democrats 66 (D66) party.[1]

Early life and education

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Kuipers was born in 1959 in Meppel, Drenthe and grew up in Creil, Flevoland.[2] His father was a general practitioner and his mother a pharmacist.[2] He attended secondary school in Emmeloord, where he completed the gymnasium curriculum in 1978.[2][3] After obtaining a propaedeutic diploma (propedeuse) in chemistry, he studied medicine at the University of Groningen.[2][3] Kuipers specialized in internal medicine and gastroenterology, and obtained a doctorate from the VU University Medical Center (now, Amsterdam University Medical Centers) in 1995.[2][3]

Career

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Between 1995 and 1997, Kuipers worked as a research associate at the Division of Infectious Diseases of the Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.[3][4]

In 2000, Kuipers was appointed professor and head of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Erasmus University Medical Center (EMC).[2][3] In this capacity, he led a widely reported 2007 study published in the journal Gut which showed that new cases of stomach cancer would likely fall 25 percent over the following 10 years in Western countries because of better living conditions.[5]

Kuipers became a member of the board of directors of the Erasmus University Medical Center in 2012, and he was appointed chief executive officer on 15 March 2013.[3] He was awarded the United European Gastroenterology Research Prize of €100,000 in 2016.[6] In addition to his role at the EMC, Kuipers started serving as chairman of the National Acute Care Network (LNAZ) in 2015.[2] In this position, he played a prominent role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands, coordinating the distribution of patients across intensive care units in the country.[2][7]

Minister of Health, 2022–2024

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On 10 January 2022, Kuipers joined the fourth Rutte cabinet as Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport, on behalf of the Democrats 66.[1] He had been politically unaffiliated before.[8] The installation of the new cabinet occurred during the last COVID-19 lockdown in the Netherlands, and Kuipers was able to announce a relaxation of restrictions that same month. He would later oppose the establishment of treatment centers for long COVID.[7]

Kuipers argued the Dutch healthcare system was no longer top-tier, pointing at shortages of general practitioners and dentists as well as long waiting lists for mental healthcare. He said healthcare had to be reformed to remain sustainable and affordable in times of an ageing population, and he posed increased cooperation and centralization, especially of specialized care, and the replacement of competition by cooperation as solutions.[7] He signed the Integrated Healthcare Agreement in September 2022 to tackle future affordability issues and to improve cooperation between healthcare providers.[7][8] Furthermore, Kuiper decided to reduce the number of specialized pediatric cardiac surgery centers in the Netherlands from four to two.[8] The impacted hospitals took legal action, and the court later blocked the plans.[9] Kuipers did not manage to finish centralization plans in acute care amongst opposition from its trade association. He also determined breast cancer patients would not be reimbursed for the novel medicine Trodelvy due to its high costs. He admitted such decisions would become more common in the future.[7]

Kuipers stepped down as minister on 10 January 2024, when the cabinet had become demissionary, to pursue an unspecified international role.[8] He was succeeded by Minister for Long-term Care and Sport Conny Helder (VVD), while Pia Dijkstra became Minister for Medical Care on behalf of D66.[10] It was announced several weeks later that Kuipers would join Nanyang Technological University in Singapore as Vice President of Research as well as distinguished professor starting 1 May.[11]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Ernst Kuipers
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2023 House of Representatives Democrats 66 74[a] 682 9 Lost [12]

Notes

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  1. ^ Kuipers participated as a lijstduwer.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Dr. E.J. (Ernst) Kuipers". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Dokterszoon Ernst Kuipers uit Noordoostpolder kent de zorg". De Noordoostpolder (in Dutch). 3 January 2022. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Ernst Kuipers". Rijksoverheid.nl (in Dutch). 5 January 2022. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Prof. Ernst J. Kuipers, MD PhD, Head of Department". Gastrolab.nl. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  5. ^ Michael Kahn (14 August 2007), Stomach cancer to fall 25 percent in 10 years: study Reuters.
  6. ^ "Ernst Johan KUIPERS". ehmsg.org. European Helicobacter and Microbiota Study Group. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d e Van den Dool, Pim (11 January 2024). "Kuipers begon met hoge verwachtingen, maar stuitte als zorgminister op weerstand en taaie dossiers" [Expectations of Kuipers were high, but he was met by resistance and tough issues as healthcare minister]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d "Ook minister Kuipers (D66) van Volksgezondheid per direct weg" [Health care minister Kuipers (D66) also resigns effective immediately]. NOS (in Dutch). 10 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  9. ^ "Rechter zet streep door plan voor sluiting twee locaties kinderhartchirurgie" [Court blocks plans to close two pediatric cardiac surgery locations]. NOS (in Dutch). 11 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  10. ^ "Pia Dijkstra wordt minister voor medische zorg" [Pia Dijkstra will become Minister for Medicale Care]. Trouw (in Dutch). ANP. 1 February 2024. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  11. ^ "Oud-minister Kuipers naar universiteit in Singapore" [Former Minister Kuipers joins Singapore university]. NOS (in Dutch). 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal 2023 d.d. 4 december 2023" [Report of the results of the election of the House of Representatives on 4 December 2023] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 4 December 2023. pp. 21–22. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport
2022–2024 		Succeeded by
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