The press release from the Swedish Ministry of Health and Welfare on 26 February 2026 concerns the government’s desire to implement a reform for people with harmful use or addiction and other psychiatric conditions, with the goal of making healthcare more uniform, cohesive and coordinated. The core problem raised is that people with co-morbidities often need interventions from several actors at the same time but today risk ending up between the chairs. The government proposes that the legislative amendments and the new law will enter into force on 1 July 2027.
The most important of the proposals is that the regions should organize addiction care so that it can be provided in a coordinated manner with other psychiatric care, that a new law should be introduced on coordinated care and support activities for people with mental disabilities and in need of special coordination for a longer period of time, and that there should be clearer requirements for collaboration when enrolling and clearer health and medical care responsibilities for people admitted to HVB (supported housing). The government also wants to replace the word “abuse” with “use”, or alternatively “harmful use and addiction”.
The National Board of Health and Welfare is tasked with supporting the implementation of the reform and developing knowledge support and guidance on which treatment interventions should be carried out by different authorities. The related legislative council referral material also specifies that the individual plan will have a clearer role, including through requirements linked to the region’s responsibility and notification to the region when someone is admitted to HVB. The National Board of Health and Welfare is to submit a final report on its assignment no later than 31 March 2027.
“People with co-morbid mental illness and harmful use and addiction often need coordinated efforts from several different actors to address their entire situation. Too many people have ended up in a kind of no-man’s land for too long and have perished. Now we are ensuring that the efforts are organized so that people with co-morbidities really get the help they need, which creates security for both the individual and their relatives” – Minister of Social Affairs Jakob Forssmed.
Previct Care – coordination, long-term approach and coherent follow-up
Previct Care can fulfill a clear function as a practical and digital support in the implementation. The reform points out the need for better coordination between addiction care, psychiatry and other support efforts. Previct Care can contribute there by creating a more coherent follow-up between care contacts, providing structure to the continuity of the care process and strengthening the possibility of sharing a common situational picture around the patient. This is particularly relevant in a reform that explicitly wants to reduce the gap between different principals and forms of care.
Previct Care can contribute with ongoing, structured monitoring that gives healthcare better opportunities to detect deterioration early, act before interruptions or relapses deepen, and work more proactively instead of reactively.
Previct Care is also relevant in transitions where patients today often lose continuity, for example between HVB, outpatient care, psychiatry and municipal support services. Since the reform raises both collaboration during enrollment and the region’s responsibility in relation to people admitted to HVB, there is a clear need for solutions that can carry information, follow-up and signals through the care chain. In these situations Previct Care can contribute to making transitions safer, more traceable and less person-dependent.
- Coordinated follow-up between addiction care and psychiatry. Since the reform emphasizes that addiction care should be provided in coordination with psychiatry, Previct Care can function as a digital collection tool for joint follow-up of symptoms, relapse risk, compliance and status between visits.
- Early detection of deterioration or relapse. The reform aims to reduce the gap in the care chain. A solution for continuous monitoring is well suited here, especially if it can provide healthcare with signals of deterioration between appointments and thus enable earlier intervention.
- Support for transitions between actors, especially HVB and outpatient care. Since collaboration during enrollment and responsibility for HVB is enhanced, Previct Care can be used for structured handover, shared situational awareness and follow-up when the patient moves between region, municipality and HVB.
- Support for individual plans and long-term coordination. The new focus on coordinated care and support activities and the clearer role of individual plans means that Previct Care can be positioned as support for goals, follow-up, activities and division of responsibilities over time.
- Implementation support when the National Board of Health and Welfare’s knowledge support arrives. The National Board of Health and Welfare will develop guidance for the principals, so that Previct Care can be adapted to future working methods and become a tool for implementing knowledge support in actual clinical everyday life.
“Previct Care can strengthen the comorbidity reform by providing healthcare with concrete digital support for coordinated follow-up, early detection of deterioration and better continuity between addiction care, psychiatry and other actors.” – Kontigo Care
LINKS (Swedish):
Regeringskansliet – Pressträff
Regeringskansliet – Presentationsbilder – Pressträff