The Catalan Parliament approves the creation of the Social and Healthcare Integrated Care Agency (AGAISS-Cat)

The Parliament of Catalonia today approved by a large majority the Law on the Integrated Social and Health Care Agency of Catalonia (AGAISS-Cat), an organisation that will, for the first time, bring together the planning, governance, and joint action of the health and social services systems. The Agency will act as the tool that makes possible the transformation of the care model for people with concurrent social and health needs throughout all stages of life.

The Minister of Health, Olga Pané Mena, stated that the creation of the Agency “was necessary because it will allow us to steer the system towards what truly brings value to people and, moreover, it will help ensure its sustainability”, adding: “This is not about creating a new system, but about ensuring that both the health and social rights systems work in a more coordinated and efficient way, with less bureaucracy to enhance people’s autonomy.” Pané stressed, finally, that the Agency is “a necessary tool for us and for future generations”.

“This law will allow us to bring together two of the pillars of the welfare state, health and social care,” highlighted the Minister of Social Rights and Inclusion, Mònica Martínez Bravo. “There has been a journey, with several previous experiences, but today we open a new stage—an entirely coordinated way of working” between the two departments, local authorities, and the wider social sector, she added. She concluded: “With this major step forward, we place Catalonia at the international forefront in terms of social and health care.”

Catalonia aligns with international transformations

The approval of this law brings to an end four decades of attempts to improve coordination between the Department of Health, the Department of Social Rights and Inclusion, and local authorities in Catalonia. Although Catalonia has already seen significant progress in integrated care over the past four years, the current model of cooperation between health and social services has reached the structural limits of what can be achieved without a shared institutional framework. The absence of unified governance, shared executive capacity, and an integrated information system makes it impossible to advance further in quality, equity, and sustainability.

The AGAISS-Cat initiative provides a structural solution in line with reforms undertaken in Scotland, Wales, Denmark, Finland and Canada, where social and health integration has become a major priority of public policy. Organisations such as the WHO, the European Commission, and the OECD agree that integration is essential to address global challenges related to ageing, chronic conditions, and dependency.

A national instrument to transform care for the most vulnerable

AGAISS-Cat therefore represents the necessary and definitive step to overcome this operational ceiling: it provides the institutional framework that will consolidate the achievements already made, ensure territorial scalability, and guarantee effective, stable, and sustainable social and health integration over time.

The objectives of AGAISS-Cat are:

1. To ensure maximum coordination among professionals and organisations in social, health, and community services.
2. To strengthen people’s autonomy and improve their health and personal well-being outcomes, promoting empowerment and shared responsibility.
3. To enhance the efficiency and sustainability of the health and social services systems.
4. To improve the experience of citizens, their carers, and professionals.

Impact on people, professionals, and the system

For individuals and families

• A single, coherent, and consistent care plan.
• A designated professional to coordinate the entire care pathway.
• Fewer procedures and less repetition, thanks to information sharing.
• More home and community-based care, avoiding unnecessary institutionalisation.
• Proactive care that anticipates risks before they become crises.

For professionals

• Real-time shared information.
• Reduced bureaucracy and elimination of duplicated tasks.
• Unified criteria and processes across the whole country.
• Territorial governance spaces for joint decision-making.
• Better capacity to deliver preventive and proactive interventions.

For the national system

• Shared governance between the Government of Catalonia, local authorities, the health sector, social services, and citizen representatives.
• Use of integrated data to plan more effectively, anticipate needs, and improve outcomes.
• Full interoperability between information systems within two years.
• Value-based funding that promotes efficiency and equity.
• Greater sustainability in a context of ageing and increasing complexity.

Next steps

The approval of the AGAISS-Cat Law is not an endpoint, but the starting point of a new stage for Catalonia’s health and social system. According to the text of the Law, the statutes must be approved within a maximum period of six months, with the aim that AGAISS-Cat can become operational within one year.

Source: press release from the Government of Catalonia