The Danish Municipalities Association (KL) presented an ambitious health initiative on Thursday with 45 concrete proposals on how to improve the prevention of diseases and dissatisfaction among citizens in Denmark’s 98 municipalities. The initiative was introduced at KL’s Social and Health Policy Forum in Aalborg and includes proposals for the introduction of tobacco and nicotine-free working hours, as well as screen-free periods in schools. The Chairman of KL’s Health and Elderly Committee, Sisse Marie Welling (Socialist People’s Party), emphasizes the importance of municipalities in prevention work. “Municipalities touch on all aspects of Danes’ everyday lives, and it is therefore natural that they play a central role in disease prevention,” she says, adding that many diseases that affect Danes’ quality of life and life expectancy can be prevented. The initiative also proposes stricter regulations on children’s diets in schools, kindergartens, and daycares, and urges the government and the Danish Parliament to introduce a ban on the sale of alcohol to persons under 18 years of age. According to Sisse Marie Welling, it is also time for health to be prioritized politically, especially with the upcoming health reform, in which municipalities should have a prominent role. “The purpose of these recommendations is to strengthen prevention efforts, so we can ensure longer and healthier lives for citizens, while reducing health inequalities and minimizing the costs of hospital treatments,” she explains. This new health initiative from KL marks an important milestone in efforts to integrate prevention as a fundamental part of the Danish healthcare system.

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