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The 11th annual Gender Equality Days (Tasa-arvopäivät) were organised on 8-9 October 2025 at the Clarion Hotel Aviapolis in Vantaa. 

Barentsin euroarktinen neuvosto Barentsin euroarktisen neuvoston (Barents Euro–Arctic Council, BEAC) puheenjohtajina toimivat vuonna 2024 kolmikantaisesti Suomi, Ruotsi ja Norja. Vuosien 2021-2023 puheenjohtajana oli Suomi. Suomi toimi myös neuvos...

6.10.2025 | Lääkealan valmius ja datalähtöinen päätöksenteko olivat keskiössä konferenssissa, jonka Suomi järjesti osana Pohjoismaiden ministerineuvoston puheenjohtajuuskauttaan Helsingissä 30.9.–1.10.

22.5.2026 | PÄIHDEHUOLLON JA LASTENSUOJELUN RAJAPINNALLA - saavatko päihteitä käyttävät nuoret tarvitsemaansa tukea? NUPPU-hanke STM:n VTR-seminaari 22.5.2026, Helsinki & webinaari Katja Kuusisto, sosiaalityön professori, Tampereen yliopisto TreAdd tutkimusry...

24.2.2026 | Sosiaali -ja terveysministeriö, Helsinki 2026 Lääkkeiden ehdollisen korvattavuuden sääntelyn kehittämistarpeet Sisältö 1 Johdanto .................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Työryhmän ...

Projects and working groups On this page you can browse and search for information on the projects and programmes of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and on the work of the working groups. For information on all projects of the Ministry o...

WORK2030 - Development programme for work and wellbeing at work The implementation of the WORK2030 programme has been based on the Programme of Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Government. The aims of the programme have been to reform operating practi...

Work ability programme The aim of the work ability programme was to eliminate obstacles to the employment of people with partial work ability and develop services to support the work ability of people with partial work ability The work ability pro...

Department for Work and Gender Equality The Department for Work and Gender Equality (TTO) guides and directs the supervision and administration of occupational safety and health, drafts legislation and policies on occupational safety and health, a...

Kansallinen ikäohjelma vuoteen 2030 Tavoitteena ikäkyvykäs Suomi Periaatepäätös Valtioneuvosto, Helsinki 2022 Valtioneuvosto This publication is copyrighted. You may download, display and print it for Your own personal use. Commercial use is prohi...

Development of working life Thriving staff and work communities, together with safe work environments, form the basis for a sustainable working life and productivity. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is developing working life in accordan...

Mental Health at Work Programme Mental wellbeing is a success factor in working life and a driver of employment. The Mental Health at Work Programme emphasises the importance of adopting preventive measures and promoting mental health in working l...

In accordance with the Government Programme of Prime Minister Orpo's Government, solving the shortage of personnel threatening the availability of services in the welfare society requires both short-term and long-term measures. The Good Work Programme will be launched to ensure the sufficiency and availability of personnel in the health, social services and rescue services sectors.

Mental Health at Work Programme The Mental Health at Work Programme (2021–2022) was led and coordinated by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, and it was part of the implementation of the National Mental Health Strategy and the Programme of...

The Government appointed a parliamentary monitoring group to support the legislative drafting project launched by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health to lay down the principles for the national choice of effective services and methods. [This is a machine translation, we do not guarantee the quality and accuracy of the translations produced.]

Read more about working at the ministry The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health employs approximately 440 people. Their jobs vary from Assistant to Permanent Secretary and from Specialist to Ministerial Adviser. Tasks are challenging and versati...

“What matters most is the people and how well they work together” Jari Keinänen has worked at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health for 25 years and leads the Wellbeing and Health Protection Unit. What motivates him are the variety of the work...

14.4.2026 | Sosiaaliturvakomitean arviointi- ja selvitysryhmä Selvitys yhdestä perusturvaetuudesta Näkökulmina rahoitus ja suhde ansioturvaan SOSIAALITURVAKOMITEAN JULKAISUJA 2026:1 Selvitys yhdestä perusturvaetuudesta Näkökulmina rahoitus ja suhde ansioturva...

27.2.2024 | 1 Perheen tukena – perhetyö lapsi- ja perhesosiaalityössä (PETU) PETU on Jyväskylän yliopiston (JYU), Jyväskylän ammattikorkeakoulun (Jamk), Lastensuojelun kehittämisyhteisö Pesäpuun ja Keski-Suomen sosiaalialan osaamiskeskuksen (KOSKE) tutkimus- ...

“I’m always looking for ways to improve how we work together by making better use of digitalisation and data” Teija Inkilä’s work combines digital services, evidence-based decision-making, artificial intelligence and collaboration between authorit...

Good Work Programme – Creating more appeal and staying power in the healthcare and social welfare sector Mounting service needs driven by an ageing Finnish population, higher rates of chronic diseases, evolving expectations and new technologies – ...

Gender mainstreaming Gender mainstreaming is a strategy for promoting gender equality, and it means that the gender perspective is taken into account in all decision-making. The Gender Equality Unit of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health coo...

Barents Euro-Arctic Council The Barents Euro-Arctic Council (BEAC) works under the Trio Presidency of Finland, Sweden and Norway in 2024. Finland held the Presidency of the Council from 2021 to 2023. Finland also chaired the Joint Working Group on...

Reform encourages both parents to take family leave The Family leave reform entered into force on 1 August 2022. The number of parental leave days will increase and there will be more flexibility for parents to take leave. The reform aims to incre...

Assessment of risks associated with gambling Assessing the risks and harm caused by gambling is statutory work conducted by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. The Ministry started to assess the risks and harm related to the running of gamb...

fi sv en National Genome Centre Data on people's genetic makeup helps make better personalised choices, target the screening of diseases, specify diagnostics, and choose the best and most effective treatment. In Finland, the development of persona...

Amending the Act on the Secondary Use of Health and Social Data The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is preparing a government proposal for amending the Act on the Secondary Use of Health and Social Data (555/2019). The Act will be amended in...

Actions to reduce the use of tobacco and nicotine products The key actions to reduce the use of tobacco and related products are: as high product prices as possible (price and tax policies) smoke-free environments banning tobacco product marketing...

General social security benefit The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is preparing a general social security benefit. The benefit would include a basic allowance for living, an allowance for housing costs and a discretionary allowance as last-...

The national health and wellbeing programme seeks to reduce the wellbeing deficit and disease burden caused by the principal chronic diseases and conditions and their risk factors, to boost working and functional capacity, and to minimise disparities between population groups due to issues of health and wellbeing.

Violence against children and its prevention The authorities work to prevent violence against children in many ways and in broad cooperation with various parties. The key national plans coordinated by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health incl...

“A career path can start in unexpected places – mine began as a Habbo Hotel moderator” Taina Pahkamaa‑Huusko has worked at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health since 2010 in a wide range of administrative roles. In her current position as Exe...

Further information fi sv en Drug Development Centre to promote competitive development of drugs Finland has competitive basic medical research of high quality that has the potential of developing new medicinal products. However, so far commercial...

Occupational safety and health (OSH) The MSAH prepares and develops legislation and policies on OSH and deals with international cooperation in this field. The ministry also guides the occupational safety and health work of the The Finnish Supervi...

Strategic and Financial Management Unit The Strategic and Financial Management Unit assists and supports the Permanent Secretary and is in charge of developing the Ministry’s strategic leadership. The Unit is responsible for advancing and developi...

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...

fi sv en Finnish Cancer Center FICAN The Finnish Cancer Center (FICAN) was established in 2019 to promote effective and equitable cancer care in Finland. FICAN’s mission is to implement the tasks defined in the Government Decree on the Division of...

Arctic cooperation

10.1.2023 | SOSIAALITURVAKOMITEAN JULKAISUJA 2020:7 Tuomo Alasoini, Matti Joensuu, Pirjo Juvonen-Posti, Noora Järnefelt, Aart-Jan Riekho , Pauliina Toivio, Jarno Turunen Työelämän ja työmarkkinoiden muutos Haasteita ja kehittämistarpeita sosiaaliturvan uudist...

fi sv en National neurocenter Neurocenter Finland accelerates collaboration in neuroscience Neurocenter Finland maintains comprehensive and up-to-date information on research projects, infrastructures, methods, materials and innovations in the fie...

Contact information Communications Unit / VIE Communications Unit / VIE Iina Bister, Communications Specialist Communications Unit / VIE Address Meritullinkatu 8, 00170 Helsinki Phone number +358295163015 Email [email protected] Mariina Cervera Li...

Provisions will be laid down on the principles according to which the inclusion of services, methods and and forms of work in the range of services and their removal will be implemented in public healthcare and social welfare. The possibility of enacting provisions on a national actor who can make a binding decision on the inclusion of the method in the range of public services will be investigated.

fi sv en People and contact details Management and coordination of the projects, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Tuula Helander, Deputy Director General, tel. +358 2951 63480 Operational planning of the national cancer centre Tuula Helander ...

Wellbeing services counties will be responsible for organising health, social and rescue services Wellbeing services counties will be responsible for organising healthcare, social welfare and rescue services in Finland. There are 21 wellbeing serv...

Tobacco and nicotine policy The Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health directs and develops Finland’s tobacco and nicotine policy, the aim of which is ending the use of tobacco and other nicotine products. The goal has been confirmed in the...

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an intergovernmental organisation of developed market-based economies with 37 member countries. Finland’s work with the OECD primarily involves the responsible officials fro...

European cooperation on market surveillance Application of product legislation The Expert Group on Machinery (MD EG), which deals with issues related to the application of the Machinery Directive, operates under the Machinery Committee of the Euro...

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s assessment of the combined impacts of government proposals, taking into account fundamental and human rights. The assessment memorandums are prepared annually as part of official duties and published in the Government Project Register Hankeikkuna.

The large-scale interim evaluation of the wellbeing services county reform aims to assess the achievement of the reform objectives in 2025 in relation to the objectives laid down in legislation. The evaluation will be carried out on the basis of the implementation in 2023–2025 and by examining the preconditions for achieving the long-term objectives of the reform.

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The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health directs, monitors and coordinates preparedness for incidents and emergencies in healthcare and social welfare.

Substance abuse and addiction prevention Shortly The goal of substance abuse and addiction prevention is to reduce harm and promote health, wellbeing and safety. The wellbeing services counties organise substance abuse prevention and provide healt...

Support and benefits The Finnish social protection system includes various forms of financial support and benefits designed to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to take part in working life and society in general. Children and parentho...

Rehabilitation The aim of rehabilitation is to enhance the individual's functional capacity, independent coping, opportunities for participation, work and study ability as well as their opportunities for employment and continuing working. Rehabili...

National Cancer Strategy 2026–2035 Cancer is a common disease in Finland. The number of cancer deaths in the country has fallen considerably over the past decades, and as many as two out of three people with cancer recover from the disease. Howeve...

Earnings-related pension Earnings-related pension is paid to a person who has accrued pension according to his or her earnings either in an employment relationship or as an entrepreneur. The size of the earnings-related pension is determined accor...

Senior Civil Servants As the most senior public official at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Permanent Secretary directs and is responsible for the Ministry’s activities. The Under-Secretary of State assists the Permanent Secretary i...

Northern Dimension The Northern Dimension Partnership in Public Health and Social Wellbeing (NDPHS) provides a platform for expert-level cooperation in the field of health and wellbeing. NDPHS aims to lead the way to sustainable and inclusive soci...

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s principles of a safer space The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health adheres to the principles of a safer space. The safer space principles refer to common practices and approaches that aim to make a space ...

Gambling Policy Programme improves prevention and reduction of harm The Gambling Policy Programme, prepared under the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, sets guidelines for the prevention and reduction of harm caused by gambling up to 2030. It...

Data Protection Contact information Data Protection Officer Data Protection Officer Lassi Kauttonen The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Department for Communities and Functional Capacity tietosuojavastaava.stm(at)gov.fi Controller The Minis...

Department for Steering of Healthcare and Social Welfare The Department for Steering of Healthcare and Social Welfare is responsible for the general steering, planning and development of healthcare and social welfare in Finland. The Department for...

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is Finland’s most important international partner in the development and evaluation of health policy in Finland and globally. Finland is an active participant in global health policy an...

Rational, or sensible, pharmacotherapy is effective, safe, of high quality, economical and equal.

Publications Publications of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is a publication series that supports the Ministry's management, communications on the Ministry's content matters as well as the strategic management of the Ministry's administ...

Income security A central feature of welfare and social security is to provide support to people in vulnerable situations. Legislation » Legislation concerning income security. Finnish social security system » The Finnish social security system in...

Maternity and child health clinics Maternity and child health services are offered for all pregnant parents, families that are expecting a baby and children before school age and their parents. The functions of the maternity and child health clini...

Social services The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is responsible for Finland’s social policy and prepares legislation on social welfare. Social welfare covers promoting social security and wellbeing and taking care of social welfare duties...

health security

The Ministry The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (MSAH) is one of the 12 ministries in the Government. The Ministry's tasks promote the good health and functional capacity of people promote healthy living and working environments secure suff...

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 ...

Project on medicines and financial base of pharmacies The Government Programme includes numerous entries related to medicines and pharmacies. These entries will be implemented in a project titled ‘Medicines and the financial base of pharmacies’ in...

Promoting inclusion strengthens social cohesion Inclusion means belonging to and being connected with communities and society. It is reflected, for example, in trust, equality and people’s opportunity to have a say in their own community and socie...

Government branch The administrative branch of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health includes several independent institutions and agencies, which implement the ministry’s objectives in society and participate in Government Programme projects....

Department for Communities and Functional Capacity The Department for Communities and Functional Capacity is responsible for matters related to health and social services for children, young people and families, services for people with disabiliti...

International examples to help Finland create governance model for wellbeing economy 4.12.2025 8.46 The economy of wellbeing offers tools for policy makers to secure the preconditions for a good life both for the current population and future gene...

The WHO Pandemic Agreement aims to strengthen international preparedness for pandemics and other public health emergencies.

Organisations and associations as part of the healthcare and social welfare system. There are more than 11,000 healthcare and social welfare organisations in Finland (2020). There are also a large number of organisations in the fields of sports, culture and rescue services.

Frequently asked questions about the Act on Secondary Use of Health and Social Data Usein kysyttyä: The law mentions the primary and secondary use of customer data. What is the difference between these two concepts? The primary use of customer dat...

Social security for athletes, grant recipients and students Social security and pensions is provided under special arrangements in the case of certain professional groups: Athletes Pension and accident insurenace is compulsory until the age of 65 ...

Drug policy Finland makes use of social policy, national legislation and international agreements to prevent the demand and supply of drugs reduce the harm caused by drugs ensure that people with drug problems receive treatment as early as possibl...

Client and patient safety The safety of care and services is part of the overall quality of healthcare and social welfare. Safe care and services are evidence-based and effective. They are provided in the right way and at the right time. Client an...

Nordic cooperation Nordic cooperation involves Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Åland, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. The vision of the Nordic countries is to make the Nordic region the most sustainable and integrated region in the wor...

Steering of wellbeing services counties The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is responsible for the general guidance, direction, planning and development of healthcare and social welfare in Finland. The Ministry of the Interior, in turn, is r...

Municipalities are responsible for promoting health and wellbeing.

COVID-19 disease in Finland Shortly Since July 2023, COVID-19 has been classified as a monitored communicable disease instead of a generally hazardous communicable disease. Vaccinations continue to be the most important way to protect against seri...

Insurance business in Finland is subject to licence.The government grants licences to authorised pension insurance companies that manage earnings-related pension insurance.

The mission of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is to safeguard people’s functional capacity, livelihoods and services so that we can live in a stable, equitable and sustainable society.

Family benefits The purpose of the benefit system for children and families is to safeguard the subsistence of the child and those responsible for his or her care, and to support the care of the child. The benefits are applied for at the Social In...

Child welfare Shortly The objective of child welfare is to guarantee children’s right to a safe growth environment, development and special protection. The aim is to provide support at the earliest possible stage at schools and maternity and child...

Services to families Services aimed at families support parents or other guardians in their efforts to ensure the well-being and good upbringing of children. Early childhood education and care Finnish early childhood education and care combines ed...

fi sv en Improving health through the use of genomic data In the next few years, the use of genomic data in healthcare will rapidly increase. In the future, decisions regarding the prevention and treatment of diseases will be increasingly based on...

Social assistance Shortly Social assistance is a last-resort form of social security that secures the essential livelihood for an individual or a family when they cannot support themselves with other income or assets. It is a means-tested benefit,...

9.5.2022 | 1 Vuoden 2021 yliopistotasoisen sosiaalityön tutkimuksen hankehaku 17.5.2021 Taloussosiaalityö lapsiperheissä Lapsiperheiden talousosaamisen ja taloudellisen toimintakyvyn vahvistaminen taloussosiaalityön intervention avulla Dosentti Mia Hakovirta...

Health services The aim of healthcare in Finland is to maintain and improve people's health, wellbeing, work ability and functional capacity and social security, as well as to reduce inequalities in health. The healthcare system is based on preven...

Legislation concerning income security The Finnish Constitution guarantees the right of all people living in Finland to Adequate social and health services Basic income security Essential subsistence and care. There is a range of legislation gover...

Gambling-related harm The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health coordinates the prevention and reduction of gambling-related harm at the government level. These measures are guided by the Gambling Policy Programme that extends to 2030. As provided...

2.6.2023 | SUOMEN SÄÄDÖSKOKOELMAN SOPIMUS SARJA Julkaistu Helsingissä 31 päivänä toukokuuta 2016 (Suomen säädöskokoelman n:o 398/2016) Valtioneuvoston asetus 27/2016 vammaisten henkilöiden oikeuksista tehdyn yleissopimuksen ja sen valinnaisen pöytäkir- jan v...

Amended legislation on health checks for children and young adults Categories: Publication date: 22.12.2025 The timing and content of health checks at child health clinics and schools, and in student healthcare and oral healthcare will be regulate...

Social security and services for people applying for and receiving international protection in Finland People applying for international protection leave their home countries for various reasons, for example, to escape war, persecution or insecuri...