Strengthening the role of occupational physiotherapists
Act amending section 3 of the Occupational Health Care Act
Physiotherapists qualified in occupational health care will be defined as occupational health care professionals rather than experts. The reform will strengthen multiprofessional cooperation and the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders in workplaces.
- Status
- Passed
- Submitted
- 21 Jan 2021
- Latest event
- 31 May 2021
- Votes
- 2
- Speeches
- 12
- Confirmed
- 18 Jun 2021
- Statute
- 555/2021
- Source
- eduskunta.fi ↗
What is proposed
The Occupational Health Care Act will be amended so that physiotherapists who have completed the necessary training are transferred from occupational health care experts to occupational health care professionals alongside doctors and public health nurses.
What it means
The change gives approximately 900 occupational physiotherapists a more independent role in occupational health care planning, action plans and workplace surveys without a doctor or nurse needing to separately determine the need for their services. This will streamline the assessment of employees' rehabilitation needs, reduce workplace ergonomics risks and require minor administrative updates by Kela. The act will enter into force on 1 January 2022.
How Parliament voted
The act ultimately passed without a vote: no MP proposed rejecting it in the final reading. The votes concerned details of the act.
3 §, mietintö / Mia Laiho
Yes won by 32–23.
Government yes, opposition no. 144 MPs were absent. Minutes ↗
Filled dot = yes, ring = no, grey = absent. The seating plan at the time of this vote is not archived, so MPs are grouped by party in indicative seats.
A passed act does not enter into force immediately: the President of the Republic confirms it, and it enters into force on the date set in the act. This act was confirmed on 18 Jun 2021.
Debate in the chamber
What was argued and where each group stood, followed by MPs' speeches verbatim from the parliamentary record. Speeches are shown in their original language.
12 speeches · 9 speakers · 2 debates
Key points of the debate
In the debate, broad support was expressed for strengthening the status of physiotherapists as occupational health care professionals to improve the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders. The opposition considered the proposal commendable, but criticised the Government for not also improving the status of occupational psychologists to address increasing mental health problems. There was broad consensus on the basic direction of the proposal.
- Should occupational psychologists also have been defined as occupational health care professionals in the bill?
- Social DemocratsIn favour
The SDP supported the proposal, as strengthening the status of occupational physiotherapists improves multiprofessional cooperation in occupational health care and helps prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders.
”Esityksen tarkoituksena onkin joustavoittaa työterveyshuollon toimintaa ja parantaa moniammatillisen ja monitieteellisen toimintatavan edellytyksiä työterveyshuollossa.”
— Krista Kiuru - Centre PartyIn favour
The Centre Party considered the proposal a necessary step in developing rehabilitation and safeguarding employees' functional capacity.
”Fysioterapeutit saavat työterveyshuollossa aseman ammattilaisina, joita he myös todellisuudessa ovat.”
— Pasi Kivisaari - GreensIn favour
The Greens supported the proposal, considering that making use of physiotherapists' expertise promotes comprehensive support for work ability and early prevention.
”Työkykymme tarvitsee kokonaisvaltaista huolenpitoa, jotta voimme ennaltaehkäistä ennenaikaista eläköitymistä.”
— Noora Koponen - National Coalition PartyIn favour with reservations
The National Coalition Party considered the bill commendable in itself, but expressed concern and criticism that occupational psychologists were left out of the reform despite the increase in mental health problems.
”Esityksen puutteena on kuitenkin se, ettei tässä esityksessä muuteta samalla myös työterveyspsykologin statusta.”
— Mia Laiho
This digest was generated by AI from 12 speeches 13 Sep 2026. Group positions are read from the speeches, not from votes; quotations were checked verbatim against the record.
Keskustelu päättyi. Asia lähetettiin sosiaali- ja terveysvaliokuntaan.
Keskustelu päättyi ja asian käsittely keskeytettiin.
Stages of consideration
The bill's path from the preliminary debate to the decision, as recorded by Parliament.
- 21 Jan 2021Eduskuntakäsittelyn vireilletulo · Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö
- 23 Feb 2021Lähetekeskustelu · Täysistunto
- 14 Apr 2021Valiokunnan mietintö tai lausunto · sosiaali- ja terveysvaliokunta
- 19 May 2021Ensimmäinen käsittely · Täysistunto
- 26 May 2021Toinen käsittely · Täysistunto
- 27 May 2021Eduskunnan vastaus ja kirjelmä
Decisions by law proposal1
- 1Laki työterveyshuoltolain 3 §:n muuttamisestaHyväksytty · 555/2021 · 18 Jun 2021
Proposed law text
The law proposals in the bill as the Government presented them. The final act may differ after committee consideration.
The law text is shown in Finnish or Swedish from Parliament's official documents; it is not translated into English.
Laki työterveyshuoltolain 3 §:n muuttamisesta
Eduskunnan päätöksen mukaisesti muutetaan työterveyshuoltolain (1383/2001) 3 § 1 momentin 4 ja 5 kohta seuraavasti:
3 §Määritelmät
Tässä laissa tarkoitetaan:
4) työterveyshuollon ammattihenkilöllä terveydenhuollon ammattihenkilöistä annetussa laissa (559/1994) tarkoitettua terveydenhuollon ammattihenkilöä, jolla on työterveyshuollon erikoislääkärin pätevyys taikka muun laillistetun lääkärin, terveydenhoitajan tai fysioterapeutin pätevyys ja työterveyshuollon toteuttamiseen tarvittava koulutus;
5) työterveyshuollon asiantuntijalla henkilöitä, joilla on psykologin pätevyys ja riittävät tiedot työterveyshuollosta tai joilla on työhygienian, ergonomian, teknisen tai muun vastaavan alan koulutus ja riittävät tiedot työterveyshuollosta tai joilla on muun kuin työterveyshuollon erikoislääkärin pätevyys;
§
Tämä laki tulee voimaan päivänä kuuta 20 .
Main content of the bill (official)
The summary and title were produced with AI on 2 Sep 2026. They are not official documents – check the details in the original bill. The title and summaries are machine translations of the Finnish AI summaries. Speeches and quotations are always shown in their original language.