Middelfart Municipality’s administration has proposed cutting 4.876 million kroner from social and health services next year, including ending vacuum cleaning in home care so older residents must buy robot vacuum cleaners themselves. The plan has drawn criticism from the municipal elder council.
Avisen Danmark reports that of the 26 million kroner Middelfart must save next year, the administration wants 4.876 million kroner to come from the social and health area. Older people receiving home care would no longer be offered cleaning services.
Instead, they would be expected to acquire robot vacuum cleaners themselves. The municipality expects that measure alone to save 1 million kroner a year. The proposal is currently in public consultation.
Ole Juel Jakobsen, chair of Middelfart’s elder council, told Avisen Danmark that the council does not consider it a good idea. According to Jakobsen, many homes are not laid out for such devices, and some residents would struggle to afford one. He also noted that a robot vacuum must be emptied, a task home help exists to handle.
Klippekort and compression stockings
The proposal would also abolish the so-called klippekort, an extra allocation letting some residents be accompanied to shops or cemeteries beyond standard care. The municipality estimates savings of 1.4 million kroner annually, equivalent to about three full-time positions. Jakobsen said the scheme has benefited many and asked whether any replacement is planned.
A third measure would change how compression stockings are granted. In future they would only be approved under section 112 of the Danish Social Services Act, as an assistive device for people with permanently reduced function, rather than by nursing staff as a treatment aid. The expected saving is 0.68 million kroner a year, and the proposal states that dropping measuring and ordering services could increase health inequality.
Per Avisen Danmark, the package also includes laying off five flex job employees at Multihuset and tightening criteria for emergency call systems. About one full-time position would be saved as responsibility for palliative care moves to the new health councils. Jakobsen welcomed that the plan keeps 32 new nursing home places at Rudbækshøj Plejehjem, citing waiting lists in the municipality.
Karin Riishede of Venstre, chair of the social and health committee, told Fyens Stiftstidende she will not comment while the proposal is in consultation. She said politicians will begin negotiations once consultation responses arrive.
According to Middelfart Kommune, the administration has proposed savings of 26.21 million kroner in 2027, rising to around 32 million kroner later, to bring municipal finances into balance. The municipality lists the end of vacuum cleaning among the largest reorganizations, with the biggest changes taking full effect from 2028. TV 2 Fyn reported on August 14 that the eldercare measure sits alongside proposed school consolidations, part of a wider pattern of elder care cuts in Danish municipalities.
