Reforms proposed to secure disability services
The programme of the current government pledges to ensure the availability of services for and equal treatment of people with disabilities. These aims are being attempted through reforms to legislation and improvements to services.
A new report prepared for the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health proposes that legislation on disability services and services for the mentally handicapped be merged. This would be done, according to the recommendations of the report, by writing the stipulations on services for mentally handicapped people into a new disability service law.
The new legislation would also give attention to people on mental health rehabilitation as a new client group.
The report also proposes that though municipalities are reposnsible for arranging services, the state would play a greater role in the funding of services, subsidising half of municipal service expenses for disabled people.
The numbers of people using disability services has doubled in the last decade to about 90,000 people. Eighty percent of them use transport services, accounting for about half of all money spent on disability services.