Region Stockholm is introducing a 25 percent discount on SL cards for all healthcare employees from the turn of the year. Due to technical reasons, the discount initially applies only to 90-day and annual passes, but politicians are working to include monthly tickets. This is part of the 2026 budget aimed at improving conditions for healthcare staff.
In a response to a letter from nurse Anna Lindén, Green Party traffic councilor Jakob Dalunde and Left Party opposition councilor Anna Sehlin explain that the priority has been to implement the discount as soon as possible. They have collaborated with the center coalition to shape Region Stockholm's 2026 budget, emphasizing that healthcare staff are the most important resource and deserve good working conditions.
Since taking over governance, the number of nursing assistants, doctors, and nurses has increased by nearly 3,000. For 2026, further measures are planned to strengthen incentives to work in the region, including 5,000 SEK in wellness benefits for full-time employees and free work shoes for all healthcare staff. The 25 percent SL discount is funded by 200 million SEK and targets all Region Stockholm employees.
Despite technical hurdles, the discount could not be implemented for monthly passes in the first step, but Dalunde and Sehlin share Lindén's view and are actively working to resolve this. The background is the welfare system's toughest economic crisis in 30 years, where the region has protected healthcare from layoffs and hired thousands of new staff. Now it's time to give back, especially after the staff's efforts during the pandemic. There is still much left to do to support healthcare's heroes.
