Finland’s social-security chief Lasse Lehtonen remains in a Brussels hospital after airport police intervened when he tried to board a Finnair flight to Helsinki in an evidently unfit state. The state agency Kela confirmed on Sunday that Lehtonen is recovering and expected to return home in the coming days; deputy director Kari-Pekka Mäki-Lohiluoma is covering his duties in the interim.
The episode – which began when gate staff noticed Lehtonen lacked a valid boarding pass and appeared disoriented – has triggered debate in Finland about employers’ responsibility to ensure the fitness-to-travel of staff on assignment. Occupational-health specialists note that many corporations rely on travellers to self-declare health issues, a model that can fail when deadlines loom or senior executives feel pressure to travel while ill.
![Kela Director’s Airport Ordeal Spurs Discussion on Traveller Health & Corporate Duty of Care]()
Global-mobility teams are being advised to add explicit ‘fit-to-fly’ attestations to pre-trip authorisation workflows and to clarify insurance coverage for medical events abroad. Finnish insurers say air-ambulance and medical-escort capacity is tight during the winter peak, and early intervention saves both money and reputational risk.
From a compliance standpoint, the case also illustrates how local authorities can bar a passenger even on an intra-Schengen itinerary when there are health or security concerns. Under EU air-transport rules, airlines must refund denied boarding caused by medical issues, but travellers may bear hotel and medical costs if no corporate policy is in place.
The episode – which began when gate staff noticed Lehtonen lacked a valid boarding pass and appeared disoriented – has triggered debate in Finland about employers’ responsibility to ensure the fitness-to-travel of staff on assignment. Occupational-health specialists note that many corporations rely on travellers to self-declare health issues, a model that can fail when deadlines loom or senior executives feel pressure to travel while ill.
Global-mobility teams are being advised to add explicit ‘fit-to-fly’ attestations to pre-trip authorisation workflows and to clarify insurance coverage for medical events abroad. Finnish insurers say air-ambulance and medical-escort capacity is tight during the winter peak, and early intervention saves both money and reputational risk.
From a compliance standpoint, the case also illustrates how local authorities can bar a passenger even on an intra-Schengen itinerary when there are health or security concerns. Under EU air-transport rules, airlines must refund denied boarding caused by medical issues, but travellers may bear hotel and medical costs if no corporate policy is in place.
