Just a tiny percentage of the one million people who try to stop smoking every year use courses covered by the basic health insurance policy, news agency ANP says on Monday.

Stop smoking courses are fully covered by insurance yet only 20,000 people made use of the option last year, according to health insurance company figures.

Just 5% of attempts to stop smoking are successful, but 30% of people who take a course with a coach manage to do so, lung specialist Wanda de Kanter told ANP. ‘A course is clearly effective, and much better than, say, nicotine plasters.’