Insurance companies usually have agreements with specific hospitals, dentists and other healthcare providers to offer cheaper fees, e.g. What does health insurance cover in Portugal? Once you have private health insurance you can make a claim on any of your private healthcare costs and get back all, or part of, the fee, depending on your level of coverage. It’s not the same thing as health insurance, which is an additional paid service. Private healthcare in Portugal works the same as anywhere else, you pay a fee to get prioritised on a surgery list, seen quicker, or to get access to a better quality of healthcare. While it’s by no means essential, depending on your health and finances the pros might outweigh the additional cost. You might be wondering if it’s worth getting private health insurance in Portugal if the national health service is so cheap. Healthcare insurance for expats in Portugal Calculating the cost of your insurance That’s one reason I’ve been grateful to have private health insurance as I’ve been able to get checked out for various issues a lot more quickly and easily than relying on my local Centre da Saude who don’t even answer the phone any more. Now it’s all but impossible, at least in my area. Once the paperwork is sorted you can show up or make an appointment at your local Centro da Saude (Health Centre) but even before Covid, getting an appointment with a family doctor for non-urgent complaints would take a couple of months. Notes for non-residents: Europeans may have a European health insurance card (EHIC), which gives you access to state-provided healthcare during your vacation but is not relevant for residents. a consultation with your family doctor usually costs €5 unless you’re under 18, over 65 or fall into certain other exempt categories. While not always completely free, it is extremely cheap, e.g. If you’re an expat, you’ll need to register with the authorities as a resident and get a social security number from the Portuguese Social Security Department to get access to public health care. The cost of healthcare in Portugal varies greatly based on whether you opt for public or private healthcare. For example, it ranked 17th in the 2021 World Index of Healthcare Innovation. The Portuguese health system ranking is very high, consistently making it into the top 20 listings of health care systems in the world. Healthcare in Portugal is not dissimilar to many of the healthcare systems across the EU. Portugal’s National Healthcare System (SNS) A visit to the doctor Let’s take a look at some of the things to consider. Each of you will have different needs so what works for us may not be the best solution for you. We’re currently looking at alternatives for when that cover stops but haven’t quite decided what to go for yet – we’re still getting quotes to help us decide what suits our needs best. One of those is access to healthcare and although as a resident, you are entitled to access the state health system, sometimes it’s good to have the extra flexibility and security that private health care can offer.īut what health insurance for expats exisits in Portugal, is it any good and how can you get it? Hopefully this article will help you inderstand the options a bit better.įor a number of years we’ve enjoyed the flexibility that having private health insurance through Mike’s employers has given us. You have to consider so many things when deciding if moving to Portugal is right for you. Relocating to a new country is both exciting and daunting.
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