Helsinki’s health, social and rescue services are being reorganised into a new Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division, which will commence its operations on 1 January 2023. Executive Director Juha Jolkkonen will be at the helm of the new Division. The staff of the new Division will remain employees of the City. As the central government of Finland will fund the new Division, the budget of the Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division will be separated from the City of Helsinki’s budget.
Elsewhere in Finland, the responsibility for organising health, social and rescue services is being transferred to the new wellbeing services counties. This is not the case in Helsinki, however. Instead, the City will remain responsible for organising its own health, social and rescue services.
The new Division will also incorporate Swedish-language day activities and housing service units for people with intellectual disabilities from the Kårkulla Joint Authority.
Unlike elsewhere in Finland, pupil and student welfare will remain part of the Education Division in Helsinki but be funded by the central government from the beginning of 2023 as well.
Promoting health and well-being will still primarily be the responsibility of the City of Helsinki.
“Despite the taxing COVID-19 pandemic and an increasingly difficult staffing situation, we have prepared for the reform of healthcare, social welfare and rescue services as planned in Helsinki. We will continue to develop health and social services for the residents of Helsinki diligently, and the Rescue Department will continue to safeguard the everyday lives of Helsinki residents,” says Executive Director Juha Jolkkonen.
The central government will fund the new Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division
The reform of healthcare, social welfare and rescue services requires the City of Helsinki to separate the finances of the new Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division from its budget and accounting. From the beginning of 2023, the Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division will be funded with universal funding from the central government and income from client fees and other operations.
The change will affect the city’s municipal tax rate, as the taxes used to fund the new Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division will be levied by the central government instead. Helsinki’s municipal tax rate in 2023 is 5.36 %. In other words, residents will have to pay more income tax to the central government and less income tax to the municipal government from the beginning of 2023. The total income tax rate will remain unchanged, however.
“The funding model of the wellbeing services counties needs urgent updating. The greatest challenge of the model is that it does not currently consider the special characteristics of cities and the associated costs. If the central government genuinely desires to address issues such as segregation, we must seek solutions in cities. As such, efforts necessary to tackle segregation need to be identified in the funding model significantly better than they currently are. In addition, it is essential for the Helsinki Rescue School to receive permanent state funding,” says Deputy Mayor Daniel Sazonov.
A new model for organisational cooperation in Helsinki
Helsinki has been preparing a new city-wide model for cooperation with organisations and the development of grant activities as part of Helsinki’s reform of healthcare, social welfare and rescue services.
A city-level advisory board will be established to promote cooperation with organisations. The board’s purpose is to cover the scope of activities related to the City’s operations and different target groups as broadly as possible.
The City’s grant activities aims to clarify communications and harmonise and reform grant practices in cooperation with grant applicants, among other things.
The article was published on 15 December and updated on 29 December.