The number of Romanian tourists who choose to spend their holidays abroad or travel often abroad is still quite high. Some prefer medical travel insurance abroad, others use the European health card issued by CNASS, while quite a few still take the risk.
European insurance card vs medical insurance for travel abroad Collage
The experiences of Romanians, regardless of the way they chose to ensure their health abroad, were shared following a post on a Facebook group dedicated to travel, about the most inspiring of the options when you go abroad: “Has anyone used the European Health Card in Italy or Spain? I have always had private health insurance, this time I made this card, but I have doubts in case of emergency, especially since on some groups I have seen testimonies of people who say that they were ignored at state hospitals when they had a medical emergency, and they had to pay”.
According to the answers received, most Romanians seem to prefer to take the European health card with them. They testified that everywhere they went and presented it they encountered no problems. Another party chooses to take out private medical travel insurance as well, given the fact that the respective European insurance card is only valid for emergencies in public hospitals.
What is the European Health Card
According to the National Health Insurance House, this European health card entitles the holder to the necessary medical benefits during a temporary stay in a member state of the European Union. It can be issued, on request, for trips outside the country of up to 12 months, being valid only on the territory of the EU member states. It is not mandatory and therefore neither is border crossing conditional on its presentation.
All persons insured in the social health insurance system can benefit from this card who can provide proof of up-to-date payment of the contribution. If it is no longer valid or a person does not have it, but receives medical services during a trip to an EU country, he will bear the cost of these services.
On the other hand, the European insurance card does not cover the costs of medical treatment for pre-existing ailments, the medical services settled being those provided by the legislation of each state.
You can find more information about the services you can benefit from on the basis of the European Card in the EU HERE.
It should also be mentioned that this card is free and valid for two years, and to obtain it you need a copy and original identity document, accompanied by documents proving the quality of the insured, such as the employee certificate, or the copy of the decision of retirement, work capacity, pension slip, or up-to-date signed document showing the status of pupil, student, etc.
Find HERE, the situations in which you can benefit from the European insurance card. European cards can be obtained either by submitting the necessary documents directly to the CAS, or online, and they will be sent to the recipient by post in about a week, depending on how popular the application period is.
Romanians’ experiences as insured tourists abroad
“Tyou just need to present it (the European card – ed.). It is for emergencies (dental interventions are excluded). Many hospitals do not even accept other insurance… Used in Spain in emergency. They behaved exemplary. I only needed this card and bulletin….Used in Italy, in emergencies, no problems. Same in Switzerland… It doesn’t need any activation, or PIN code. Only the insurance number on the card is retained… Impeccable services and incomparable to those in Romania”echo the experiences of Romanians who benefited from the services conferred by the European insurance card.
Some of them also mentioned that although they did not have it on them, it was enough to present a copy, on the phone, sent by relatives at home.
“For the child, they didn’t ask us for any insurance documents and they made us an appointment with a family doctor, so that we could go for a check-up after the treatment. I stayed in Spain for about a month then”, one netizen recalled.
Others stated that they also benefited from it in countries such as Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary or Malta: “I used it in France, being accepted in the emergency room, including for the baby’s vaccinations from the French compulsory scheme, plus free monthly consultations… In Poland, I had a CT scan at no cost… In Prague I went to the guard, I didn’t have to pay anything even though in addition to the consultation I also had an X-ray… I only needed it once for my daughter who had a very bad otitis, in Greece, on the island of Limnos. I went to the state hospital, but the registration process was very fast, she was consulted impeccably… she received the prescription and the card partially covered the costs of the treatment taken at the pharmacy. Our experience was flawless… 8-10 years ago we took my mother to Spain and Italy on holiday where we arranged for her to have dialysis every other day. I didn’t pay anything extra, and the international health card fully covered the dialysis.”
Medical insurance for travel abroad
There were also Romanians who mentioned that the respective European insurance card was not of much help to them: “We also had an emergency in Bulgaria, and this card didn’t do anything, we had to pay for the consultation… In Lithuania, because the problem did not fit into a medical emergency, the consultation and analyzes were against the cost”.
Some wanted to specify that having only medical insurance for travel abroad, they were forced to pay the costs of medical services in state hospitals, as is the case of a family recently returned to the country from Munich – Germany.
Other netizens have nuanced: “The European card is used in state hospitals. Private health insurance is used in private hospitals. So they are not mutually exclusive. Depending on your needs and the area you are traveling to, both can be useful…”. That’s exactly why, uRomanian tourists prefer to take out private insurance in addition to the card.
An insurance specialist, consulted by “The Truth” however, he explained that travel medical insurance is still optional, the policy being concluded with an insurance company. The costs in this case, however, differ from one company to another, depending on the service package offered, the age of the beneficiary – the most expensive being those for babies and seniors over 60, the destination – here the prices increase depending on the distance , the most expensive being those for the USA, Canada, etc. and the cheapest ones to destinations bordering Romania, such as Bulgaria, Turkey or Greece, for the limit of liability (sum insured), period etc. Rates start from 35 lei. It should also be mentioned that it also covers dental emergencies.
Related to the experiences of Romanians who mentioned that they had to pay for certain medical services, even though they had medical travel insurance abroad, and that is why they prefer to opt for a European insurance card, the specialists recommend that before using them call the number on the policy to be directed to medical facilities where you will not encounter any problems.
But even so, it is good to know that upon returning to the country, if you show proof of payment, the services will be settled by the insurance company anyway.
