– I have made sure that the National Health Inspectorate is following up on what has been uncovered about different practices by the state administrators, says Minister of Health Jan Christian Vestre to VG.
The statement comes after the newspaper has recently documented that several state administrators have had completely different views on whether forced relocation and detention are permitted under the law that regulates coercion against the developmentally disabled (Health and Care Services Act chapter 9).
According to VG, at least 112 people with disabilities have been moved against their will in the past five years. The newspaper wrote, among other things, that the State Administrator in Møre og Romsdal approved that a developmentally disabled person was forcibly relocated and could be detained for one year outside the home municipality, with physical force.
– All forced use in Norway must be in accordance with the law and with good supervision and complaint arrangements. Coercion may only be used to prevent or limit significant harm. This is crucial for the legal security of the developmentally disabled, says Vestre.