European Health Insurance Card – EHIC
Did you know that…
Only the people that usually reside in the UK and are in Spain on holiday or for a temporary stay have the right to use the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) issued by the UK to access state healthcare in Spain?
If you need more information about the use of the EHIC as a tourist in Spain, or want to ensure that you and your family have full access to state healthcare in Spain as residents, keep on reading…
The UK European Health Insurance Card is valid for holidaymakers and people on a temporary stay who need to use the state health system while in another EEA country.
Any treatment provided is on the same terms as an insured national of the country you are visiting, so if a Spanish national is required to pay a fee towards their treatment in Spain, customers would also have to pay the same fee. In Spain, customers are obliged to pay between 10% and 60% towards prescriptions.
Who is entitled to the UK EHIC?
- People on a temporary stay in Spain
- People on holiday or on a temporary visit to Spain, who ordinarily reside in the UK.
- If you are on a holiday or a temporary stay in Spain e.g. you have a second home during some months of the year, but still consider that you live mainly in the UK, you can use the UK European Health Insurance Card in Spain.
- UK students in Spain studying as part of a UK course.
- If you have come to spend a year in Spain, as part of your university degree, then the European Health Insurance Card is your correct form of health cover in Spain.
The EHIC entitles you to all medically-necessary treatment for the duration of your stay. This is decided by the doctor and will be given to you on the same basis as an insured resident in Spain, taking into account the nature of the treatment and the length of your stay.
It can include routine or specialist treatment and the monitoring of ongoing conditions, as long as the treatment can’t wait until you get home. You can also get dialysis and oxygen treatment, although you must organise this in advance of your trip with the public health authority that covers the area you are travelling to.
If you live mainly in Spain and are outside any of the situations mentioned above you must register for the state healthcare in to ensure you are fully protected.
Extracted from Healthcareinspain.eu