The Labor Party has unveiled its comprehensive vision for Norway, highlighting healthcare as one of its five primary focus areas. This emphasis is well-founded: ensuring accessible, quality healthcare for all is arguably the cornerstone of a just welfare society.
Good health not only grants individuals freedom and security but also fosters societal engagement and workforce participation. When illness or aging strikes, citizens should feel assured that their community will support them, irrespective of age or financial circumstance. Our collective healthcare system must be the go-to option for both patients and the dedicated professionals within it.
Recent years have seen a struggle with a shortage of general practitioners and increasingly lengthy hospital wait times. However, the crisis surrounding general practitioners is nearing resolution, and the promise to reduce waiting times has restored them to pre-pandemic levels—a clear indication that progress is underway.
Nevertheless, we face an imminent surge in the number of elderly people requiring care, alongside a labor market that is already stretched thin. It becomes imperative to direct our professional resources where they are most needed and create streamlined access points to health services. Additionally, we must rethink our neighborhoods and municipalities to support an aging populace effectively.
To tackle these pressing challenges, a robust health strategy for Norway is essential.
A Healthier Population
The Labor Party, in collaboration with stakeholders across the workforce, aims to bridge the gaps in health equity, curtail sick leave, and ensure that fewer individuals exit the labor market prematurely. By 2026, we are committed to bolstering the GP network to help mitigate the incidence of sick leave, expedite diagnostics, offer more nuanced sick leave options, and provide comprehensive interdisciplinary follow-ups. We will also persist in rolling out our mental health escalation plan.
Faster Healthcare
The Party has set clear targets for annual reductions in waiting times throughout this parliamentary term and intends to establish specific benchmarks for further assessments and treatments. Efforts to modernize the GP system will continue, including an experiment with a municipal online doctor by 2026, allowing for quicker access to healthcare through digital appointments when physical visits are unfeasible. We will bolster patient choice in hospitals and explore national agreements with private providers to optimize our healthcare capacity. Next year, we plan to invest in five new hospital projects.
Envisioning the Healthcare Service of Tomorrow
The Labor Party is committed to a health reform that ensures world-class services for years to come. We have established a health reform committee and are gradually expanding public dental health services while collaborating with KS on “project X.” This initiative focuses on innovative partnerships between municipal health services and specialized healthcare providers to enhance service delivery. By 2026, we aim to roll out the “Health Personnel Plan 2040,” which will address recruitment and retention of medical professionals, boost productivity, and improve resource allocation within health and care services. Additionally, we plan to accelerate investments in artificial intelligence and medical technology within hospitals.
The Elderly Promise
We believe that it should be easier for the elderly to remain in their homes longer, and it is crucial that they have the assurance of securing a spot in a nursing facility when the time comes. The Labor Party will aid municipalities in managing the challenges of an aging population. To this end, in 2026, we aim to introduce financial support for older citizens wishing to adapt their homes to maintain independence. We are also committed to implementing a hearing aid guarantee, ensuring that no one faces a wait longer than four months for this essential device.
The Labor Party envisions a robust public health service that is both accessible and forward-thinking. This is a service designed not only for patients and their families but also as a preferred workplace for the dedicated healthcare professionals within it.
By ensuring that every individual receives the assistance they require, we lay the groundwork for a safer, healthier society. In doing so, we reaffirm our commitment to securing health for all.
By members of the Labor Party
The Storting’s Health and Care Committee
Truls Vasvik, Mona Nilsen, Kai Steffen Østensen, Farahnaz Bahrami, and Ragnhild Bergheim