Children in psychiatry get deadlines for assessment and treatment
Official title (in Danish): Lov om ændring af sundhedsloven (Samlet patientrettighed for børn og unge, der er henvist til udredning i psykiatrien, og forøgelse af statslige færdigbehandlingstakster for psykiatriske patienter)
In short
Reading time: 1 min- What changes:
- The act gives children and young people who have been referred for assessment in child and adolescent psychiatry deadlines for assessment and treatment, as well as the right to free choice of hospital if the deadlines cannot be met.
- It also raises the state rates for fully treated psychiatric patients who wait especially long for a municipal offer.
- Who: The rules on deadlines and free choice of hospital apply to children and young people who have been referred for assessment at a child and adolescent psychiatric hospital department. The rates apply to municipalities whose residents have been fully treated in a psychiatric department and are waiting especially long for a municipal offer.
- When: The Act entered into force on 1 January 2026.
Written by AI from verbatim quotes from the source and checked by code and AI. Dates, tables and the fact box are calculated by fixed rules. Unofficial translation. Always read the original.
Sources and original
Read the official text (in Danish) →
The case at the Danish Parliament (ft.dk)
Source: Retsinformation.dk
Translated from Danish · The Danish version and the original source apply.
Summary by the Danish Parliament (in Danish)
Lovforslaget udmønter to centrale initiativer fra "Aftale om en samlet 10-årsplan for psykiatrien", som er indgået den 19. maj 2025 mellem regeringen (Socialdemokratiet, Venstre og Moderaterne) og Danmarksdemokraterne, Socialistisk Folkeparti, Liberal Alliance, Det Konservative Folkeparti, Enhedslisten, Dansk Folkeparti, Radikale Venstre og Alternativet. Det foreslås, at personer, der henvises til udredning på en børne- og ungdomspsykiatrisk sygehusafdeling, skal have én samlet patientrettighed, der indebærer, at - bopælsregionen begynder udredningen senest 1 måned efter henvisningen er modtaget - bopælsregionen yder endelig udredning og påbegynder behandling inden for 2 måneder, efter henvisningen er modtaget. Lovforslaget indebærer, at børn og unge i psykiatrien får ret til udvidet frit sygehusvalg i tilfælde, hvor bopælsregionen ikke kan påbegynde udredning inden for 1 måned, eller hvor bopælsregionen ikke kan tilbyde endelig udredning og påbegynde behandling inden for 2 måneder. Det foreslås også at øge de statslige færdigbehandlingstakster for borgere, der venter særligt længe på et kommunalt tilbud. Ændringen skal øge kommunernes incitament til at hjemtage færdigbehandlede patienter fra psykiatriske afdelinger på sygehusene, der har ventet mere end tre uger. Det vil sikre en bedre udnyttelse af den eksisterende kapacitet i psykiatrien og skabe grundlag for et tættere samarbejde mellem regioner og kommuner om at sikre trygge overgange for patienterne.
Source: Folketinget (ft.dk). Reproduced unchanged.
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- Introduced · 9 October 2025Status in the Danish Parliament: Fremsat
- Passed · 19 December 2025Status in the Danish Parliament: 3.beh./Vedtaget
- Stadfæstet · 29 December 2025Status in the Danish Parliament: Stadfæstet
- In force · 1 January 2026Status in the Danish Parliament: Stadfæstet