Abstract

This essay discusses vulnerability in the context of health law, focusing on the decentralization of the Dutch healthcare system. Over the last decade, the Dutch healthcare system has undergone extensive decentralization, with municipalities assuming greater responsibility for delivering youth care and social support services. This decentralization primarily aimed to make citizens more accountable for their own healthcare needs and to encourage them to arrange necessary support themselves, while keeping healthcare and support expenditures manageable. However, municipalities often struggle to provide the required support, a challenge regularly faced by vulnerable residents. At the same time, healthcare expenditure is unsustainable in the long run and novel reforms in the so-called ‘social domain’ are required. The legal framework underpinning these reforms is commonly known in the Netherlands as ‘the social domain’. This essay contends that the ‘social domain,’ that is, the part of social policy which includes different types of social and healthcare assistance, can no longer be considered suitable within the framework of administrative law discourse. This assertion arises from the evolving dynamics within administrative law, influenced by various factors and events such as the Childcare Benefits Scandal, the Youth Reform Agenda, and the planned trajectory for youth and family protection.