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International and EU affairs On this page Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s objectives for international and EU cooperation International Affairs Unit EU affairs at the Ministry Global cooperation Nordic and regional cooperation Human rights...

EU collaboration project to promote access to genomic data The success of the European ‘1+ Million Genomes’ Initiative relies on wide-ranging collaboration. Among the objectives of the EU project is to ensure secure, cross-border access to genomic...

Global cooperation The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health prepares international policies within its branch of government, participates in preparing agreements and formulating policy approaches and sees to their implementation and monitoring in...

International and EU affairs On this page Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s objectives for international and EU cooperation International Affairs Unit EU affairs at the Ministry Global cooperation Nordic and regional cooperation Human rights...

Fighting infectious disease The aim of fighting infectious diseases is their prevention and to stop them from spreading. Prevention is one of the responsibilities of the social and health care services. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is...

Department for Clients and Services in Healthcare and Social Welfare The Department for Clients and Services in Healthcare and Social Welfare prepares and develops issues pertaining to the position and rights of the customer and the patient, healt...

EHDS Regulation The EHDS Regulation is an EU regulation that improves citizens’ control over their personal health data and provides healthcare professionals with access to patient data, regardless of where patients live or receive treatment. The ...

Whistleblower protection Whistleblower protection safeguards people who report certain types of misconduct. In this case, a ‘whistleblower’ is a person who, in the course of their work, discovers a breach of European Union or national law concerni...

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Minister of Social Affairs and Health Wille Rydman The Finns Party Minister of Social Affairs and Health Wille Rydman is responsible for all other matters covered by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, ...

Fighting infectious disease: Responsibilities of the authorities The task of healthcare and social welfare services is to safeguard that the population has the healthcare and social welfare services essential to their health and functional capacit...

Healthcare and social welfare for illegal residents Illegal residents mean persons who have no right of residence in Finland according to the Aliens Act. An asylum seeker’s residence in Finland is considered unauthorised when a decision to reject ...

11.9.2025 | The Government is proposing to Parliament a legislative amendment that would oblige the wellbeing services counties to prepare for the use and threat of military force. The amendment concerns the Act on Organising Healthcare and Social Welfare Services, and it aims to ensure close cooperation between the wellbeing services counties and the Finnish Defence Forces in both normal and emergency conditions.

5.12.2025 | 1 Classified as ECDC NORMAL Appendix 10 - Country follow-up to ECDC PHEPA recommendations Following the PHEPA mission conducted in your country, the final ECDC assessment report includes a series of recommendations aiming at supporting your countr...

17.6.2025 | The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health requests comments on a draft government proposal to amend the Act on Organising Healthcare and Social Welfare Services. The aim is to clarify the obligation of wellbeing services counties to prepare for the use or threat of military force. The consultation period is open from 17 June to 23 July 2025.

5.12.2025 | Country report: ECDC Public Health Emergency Preparedness Assessment for Finland, 2024 Under Article 8 of the Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 ASSESSMENT ECDC ASSESSMENT Country report: ECDC Public Health Emergency Preparedness Assessment for Finland, 20...

26.9.2024 | Minister of Social Security Sanni Grahn-Laasonen will attend a High-level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance in New York on 26 September 2024. Minister Grahn-Laasonen will deliver Finland’s address at the meeting, highlighting as a new theme the importance of the gender perspective in comprehensive antimicrobial resistance prevention.

6.7.2021 | On Tuesday 6 July, the Government decided on a decree and on a model for preventing the spread of COVID-19 infections to Finland from abroad.

21.9.2021 | The Government has submitted to Parliament a proposal for extending the validity of the temporary provisions of the Communicable Diseases Act concerning entry into the country. The provisions aim to protect the health of the population by preventing COVID-19 infections of foreign origin from spreading into Finland. Health security measures similar to those proposed by the Government are in place in many EU countries.

21.9.2021 | The Government has submitted to Parliament a proposal for extending the validity of the temporary provisions of the Communicable Diseases Act concerning entry into the country. The provisions aim to protect the health of the population by preventing COVID-19 infections of foreign origin from spreading into Finland. Health security measures similar to those proposed by the Government are in place in many EU countries.

11.8.2020 | To prevent the spread of the coronavirus, more measures will be targeted at travellers arriving in Finland from so-called high-risk countries. These include an official quarantine order or a requirement to take a coronavirus test. The matter is currently being prepared as the aim is to introduce rapidly a new operating model.