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HEALTH

Denmark’s regions set to be disbanded after 12 years

The five elected regional councils responsible for administration of the Danish healthcare service face closure in a new reform.

Published: 16 January 2019 10:01 CET
Denmark’s regions set to be disbanded after 12 years
File photo: Linda Kastrup/Ritzau Scanpix

Several Danish media, including Ritzau, reported late on Tuesday that sources have indicated that Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen’s government will announce its intention to scrap the regions when presenting the reform on Wednesday.

The five regional councils — North Jutland, Central Jutland, Southern Denmark, Zealand and the Capital Region – on which 205 elected officials serve, will be disbanded at the end of 2020, according to the reports.

The future administrative structure of the public health service will consist of three tiers. The first will be a state body attached to the Ministry of Health, with responsibility for budgeting and overall planning.

Five regional administrations, with the same geographical demarcations and administrative centres, will be in charge of running major hospitals, but will not be under the auspices of elected officials.

According to some reports, the current regional chairpersons will be offered the chance to continue in their roles leading regional bodies.

A number of the duties of the existing regions will be transferred to 21 new health associations, which will be attached to hospitals across the country.

The idea behind this aspect of the new structure is to help hospitals, GPs and municipalities to work closer together, Ritzau writes. Mayors and chairs in municipal health committees will be in charge of the local health associations, which will include representatives of hospitals and general practices.

The expected announcement brings to an end speculation which has lasted several months over the government’s future plans for the health system.

While the Conservative, Liberal Alliance and Danish People’s parties have all called for the regions to be scrapped, the opposition is not in support of this.

Denmark’s regions were established in 2007 and officials were most recently elected in 2017.

READ ALSO: Most Danes happy with healthcare: survey

HEALTH

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

Denmark's government has struck a deal with four other parties to raise the point in a pregnancy from which a foetus can be aborted from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, in the first big change to Danish abortion law in 50 years.

Published: 3 May 2024 08:06 CEST
Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

The government struck the deal with the Socialist Left Party, the Red Green Alliance, the Social Liberal Party and the Alternative party, last week with the formal announcement made on Monday  

“In terms of health, there is no evidence for the current week limit, nor is there anything to suggest that there will be significantly more or later abortions by moving the week limit,” Sophie Løhde, Denmark’s Minister of the Interior and Health, said in a press release announcing the deal.

The move follows the recommendations of Denmark’s Ethics Council, which in September 2023 proposed raising the term limit, pointing out that Denmark had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Western Europe. 

READ ALSO: 

Under the deal, the seven parties, together with the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives, have also entered into an agreement to replace the five regional abortion bodies with a new national abortion board, which will be based in Aarhus. 

From July 1st, 2025, this new board will be able to grant permission for abortions after the 18th week of pregnancy if there are special considerations to take into account. 

The parties have also agreed to grant 15-17-year-olds the right to have an abortion without parental consent or permission from the abortion board.

Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for Digitalization and Equality, said in the press release that this followed logically from the age of sexual consent, which is 15 years old in Denmark. 

“Choosing whether to have an abortion is a difficult situation, and I hope that young women would get the support of their parents. But if there is disagreement, it must ultimately be the young woman’s own decision whether she wants to be a mother,” she said. 

The bill will be tabled in parliament over the coming year with the changes then coming into force on June 1st, 2025.

The right to free abortion was introduced in Denmark in 1973. 

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