In July 2025, the Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA) submitted a concept paper for draft legislation for public consultation, aiming to support the integration of health and social services and improve continuity of care for people with complex needs, especially in the context of population ageing and increasing multimorbidity. The concept paper highlights persistent fragmentation between Estonia’s health and social systems, characterized by separate planning, funding and decision-making, that results in poor coordination, reactive service provision, and inefficiencies such as service duplication and lack of interoperable data systems. This fragmentation leads to delayed support, avoidable hospitalizations and higher long-term societal costs.
To address these challenges, the concept paper proposes establishing regional “well-being regions” aligned with existing counties, each with population-based goals tailored to local needs. Regional networks (TERVIKs) will bring together PHC providers, hospitals and municipalities (responsible for delivering social services) to jointly implement shared strategies. “Well-being regions” are expected to adopt risk-based population management to proactively identify and support vulnerable groups. The Estonian Health Insurance Fund will contract TERVIKs to cover base costs and incentivize results, while the MoSA will provide support through development projects. Specially trained health coordinators will ensure cross-sector case management using shared digital tools.
Following public consultation, legal amendments are expected to be submitted to the government in January 2026, with parliamentary proceedings in the first half of 2026.