A full and comprehensive guide on how the medical system is arranged in Poland and how to use it if you need to cure or pass tests.
How is the medical system in Poland?
I would never like to hurt, but even healthy people happen trouble and the need to consult a doctor. And if you know all the nuances in your native country, then the prospect of life abroad can strain just because of ignorance – as a device is a medical system, is it possible to be treated for free if paid – how much, how to see the doctor with children, what to do in urgent situation and so on. In this article we will analyze the answers to all questions from the point of view of the foreigner.
Principle of the device of the medical system in Poland
In general, the system does not differ from that in Ukraine or Russia. There is a general insurance, there is a network of state clinic and hospitals, there are private medical centers. Most of the inhabitants of the country are insured and can be treated for free. There is an opportunity to independently pay for public markets, or purchase private.
The system is similar to other European countries. In the sense that there are family doctors, the so-called first contact doctors. They have a wide profile and can either prescribe treatment, or send to consult a specialist. If the case does not look urgent, then you can wait for a specialist or examination consultation for a long time – up to 2-3 months, in some cases longer. This is minus the Polish medical system.
Without a direction from a family doctor, you can contact only such specialists as an obstetrician gynecologist, an oncologist, psychiatrist, a venereologist and a dentist.
For a fee to any specialist, you can contact even today, as well as pass any survey. As in the framework of private medical insurance. Private medical centers are full.
Main Medical Insurance in Poland – NFZ
The health care system in Poland is funded mainly by taxpayers. All those who officially work on the basis of the employment contract are subject to mandatory health insurance. And monthly, their employer lists 9% of income to the National Health Fund (NFZ). Insured can enter into its insurance of non-working family members, it will not increase the amount of tax.
NFZ distributes money by regions and their medical facilities. And also concludes contracts with various medical centers. Often the situation when a private clinic under an agreement with NFZ provides services for free – consultations of doctors, surveys, dentistry. It is profitable for private owners. At the same time, in Poland there is no special difference between state and private medical institutions, all at a high level with good service standards.
In addition to working under an employment contract, which are obliged to make deductions to the Health Fund, NFZ insurance also receive:
- entrepreneurs (they are also required to make contributions)
- pensioners and those who receive an annuity (cannot work due to disability)
- children and students (only with Polish citizenship or a Pole's card, does not apply to other foreign students)
- pregnant women (also only with Polish citizenship)
- people on unemployment records
- soldiers, border guards
- clergymen
- farmers and their families
- judges and prosecutors.
NFZ for foreigners
The question arises, what to do with non-working family members, as well as children and pensioners who do not have Polish citizenship? Everything is done according to the principle mentioned above – a working family member enters them into his insurance. This may apply not only to spouses and children, but also to parents if the employee lives with them.
Otherwise, there is no difference – for the medical service, you are no different from the Poles. Pay the same deductions and have access to medical care at the same level.
The hospital usually does not require any proof that you are insured. All information is in a single database based on the PESEL number (an identification number that every Pole has and can be obtained by a foreigner). If for some reason you don’t have a pesel, then it’s better to get a certificate from the employer stating that he pays deductions to the NFZ for you. However, medical workers have no reason to demand such documents. As a last resort, you can sign a paper stating that you are insured. Unless, of course, they are insured, otherwise the treatment will have to be paid out of their own pocket.
Can I pay for NFZ insurance on my own?
Yes, you can start transferring contributions voluntarily. This can be done by all people who do not work under an employment contract and are not recorded in the insurance of one of their relatives. For example, students who came from other countries (not the EU), temporarily unemployed foreigners.
The amount is linked to the minimum wage. The minimum wage in Poland increases every quarter. And if at the end of 2020 you had to pay less than PLN 500 per month for voluntary NFZ, now it’s already a little more.
The good news is that students pay less, for them the monthly fee is about 50 PLN. An important point: students in Poland are considered to be people under 26 years old. Then you can, of course, study, but there will be no student benefits.
Long-term payments for NFZ insurance premiums may decrease.
NFZ insurance – what else is important to know
Treatment in Poland is also possible with the use of compulsory car insurance – if the cause of illness / injury was a traffic accident. In this case, it does not matter whether the victim himself is insured – the funds for treatment, if the documents are properly executed, are transferred from the account of the insurer, where the driver of the car that caused the accident was insured.In this case, it is not necessary to have accident insurance, but the so-called autocivilka (OS – odpowiedzialność cywilna) is enough.
Another important point is that if you are in Poland, having a temporary or permanent residence permit (stay card) and are insured in the NFZ, then you have the right to free treatment in other EU countries. But not by default. Before traveling to other countries, you need to contact ZUS (the state body that deals with insurance and pensions) and get an EKUZ card there for free. By presenting this card you will be able to seek treatment free of charge in any EU country.
What about private health insurance?
There are plenty of them, prices are usually very attractive: from 30 to 250 zł, depending on the package. The package includes the number of specialist doctors and the number of examinations, as well as a certain amount for treatment in case of a sudden admission to the hospital.
Such insurance is cheaper than NFZ, but NFZ covers absolutely any situation, and private insurance has many restrictions, and the cheaper it is, the more of them. However, if you are young and generally healthy, it may not be worth overpaying.
Medicine in Poland for children
All children under 18 years of age are entitled to free health care under the NFZ. But this does not apply to children of foreigners (from non-EU countries). So, when you come to Poland and get a job, the first thing to do is to include your children in your NFZ insurance.
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Examples of prices in private clinics in Poland
If you go without NFZ insurance for a while, or want to speed up your appointment with a doctor, you will be interested in prices in private clinics. Here are the average figures:
| First contact doctor's consultation: general practitioner / pediatrician | 100 zł |
| Specialist doctor's consultation | 100-300 zł |
| ultrasound | PLN 80-150 |
| General blood analysis | 20-50 zł |
| Calling a doctor at home | 200-300 zł |
| Massage | 100-300 zł |
| caries treatment | 100-150 zł |
| Eyesight check | 70-100 zł |
Dentistry in Poland
The mandatory NFZ insurance includes dentistry. Interestingly, there are no state dental clinics in Poland. But there are a lot of private ones and most of them cooperate with NFZ.
The insurance includes general dental services, surgery (tooth extraction), periodontics (treatment of mucous membrane and tissue diseases), prosthetics (crowns, bridges), anesthesia if necessary, emergency care, annual examination, x-rays, hygiene (tartar removal).
It is important to note that within the framework of the NFZ, dental care is not complete, but limited, which is described in detail here. If there are any complicated cases, then you will have to be treated anyway for money. There are, for example, restrictions on the number of “white” fillings made from the best materials, on root canal treatment, on the frequency of installing prostheses and their repair, on the frequency of x-rays, cleaning of tartar, and so on.
Additional services are also available for children and adolescents under 18 years of age.In particular, the protection of the teeth with special varnish, hygiene of dairy teeth, orthodontic treatment with removable devices. Again there are conditions for the frequency of procedures and age.
If you wish to turn to the dentist paid, then, as a rule, the treatment of ordinary caries will cost 100-150 zlotys, including anesthesia. Tooth removal is about 200 zł. Hygienic cleaning – 150-300 zł depending on technology. Channel treatment – from 500 zł. Prostheses, crowns, bridges, implants – from 1000 zł up to 5,000 per tooth.
What to do in case of health problems?
As soon as you insure NFZ, we recommend contacting the clinic (Przychodnia) and attached to the family doctor. It does not have to be a polyclinic at the place of residence, you have the right to choose any. Although private, if it provides services under the NFZ Treaty. You may only refuse if the selected doctor already has enough patients (there is a limit). You can change the attachment to the family doctor for free twice a year, further – for 80 zł. Exception – if you moved.
For consultation, you need to contact your clinic and a first contact doctor if necessary will give direction to other specialists. You can sign up by phone or personally. It depends on the clinic, somewhere there are usually free "numbers", somewhere you have to stand in line from an early morning to "catch" time. If a sudden health problem has appeared, then you can come and most likely take off without a queue. But you have to wait.
It is possible to call home a doctor from the clinic if the patient feels not good enough to appear independently. The doctor may refuse a home visit if not sees sufficient readings or if there has a large number of calls. As a rule, Poles prefer to come themselves either to contact an emergency hospital.
There are private clinics and doctors who will come home without any problems, for example, to a child with a cough or temperature. But it will cost this 200-400 zloty. The service "Doctor at the House" is included in private medstrashovki.
A pandemic gave impetus to the development of telemedicine – doctors from the clinic advise and write recipes by phone, give directions for tests. If the situation does not require a full-time inspection, it is quite possible to use such a consultation. Even a fee will cost only 40-50 zł (there are special online services). It is convenient, especially with the fact that most of the drugs in Poland can only be bought with a recipe – not always to get or extend the recipe must be riding a doctor.
Polyclinics in Poland, as a rule, work from 8 to 18 hours. At the time when they are closed, with a sudden worsening of health, it is necessary to contact special items of medical care, which are open from 18 hours to 6 am, as well as on holidays. Such items are in large hospitals. Here you can see the addresses in your city.
Important: Do not confuse the above items with SOR – emergency departments in hospitals. SOR is an analogue of ambulance, it is necessary to go there in case of a threat to life – heart attacks, strokes, injuries, and so on. SORs work around the clock. In such places, as a rule, queues for several hours, especially on holidays.
How to call an ambulance in Poland
Is it possible to call an ambulance? Certainly. Number – 999 or 112. But you need to understand a significant difference. In the CIS countries, fast coming on situations that are not directly related to life threat – high temperature, pressure and so on. In Poland, the ambulance is not doctors on the house, but highly qualified rescuers whose main goal is to maintain life in you until it is delivered to the hospital (the service is called – Pogotowie Ratunkowe, that is, rescue). That is why the ambulance comes almost instantly.
Among the grounds for the emergency call:
- loss of consciousness
- Causes
- Sudden and severe chest pain
- Strong violation of heart rhythm
- acute pain in the abdominal area
- Vomiting with blood
- Strong bleeding
- injury as a result of an accident
If you only advise you on the ambulance call and refuse the arrival, try to explain why the situation threatens life and why the patient himself is not able to get to the hospital. If you do not know Polish, then, as a rule, there are specialists who know English or Russian in emergency service.
In any case, if, for example, a child has a temperature or frequent vomiting, there is no good sense to cause rescuers. They have no qualifications in order to diagnose and write medicine. It is better to immediately go (at least by taxi) to an emergency point where the child will examine the pediatrician and specialists, take tests and prescribe treatment.
We also add that even if you have no insurance, you will have emergency assistance in the Polish hospital anyway. But not free.
Another point – treatment from COVID-19 on the territory of Poland is free for everyone, even for uninsured and foreigners.
That's all the information. If you have questions – ask. And most importantly – do not get sick!