The health care system in Belgium is funded through the state sickness fund. There are four tiers of operation consisting of central government, national associations, federations of local societies, and local mutual aid societies. The Belgian government believes that this power sharing motivates each local fund to work hard to attract and satisfy its members.
Theft and pick pocketing is a problem in crowded areas. Be extra vigilant in Brussels and Antwerp at major railway stations, on the underground, buses and trams, particularly late at night.
In Belgium, Roman Catholicism is the majority religion, accounting for between 75% and 80% of the population, although as of 2004 only about 10% to 20% of the population regularly goes to church.