Contact Point in Finland

The Contact Point provides service on the EU-healthcare.fi website and by e-mail.

• You can reach the Contact Point at yhteyspiste(at)kela.fi. We will respond within five working days. Our e-mail service is available in Finnish, Swedish and English.
• The Contact Point provides you with general information on cross-border healthcare. In personal matters concerning benefits, such as applications, please contact Kela’s service channels, like Kela’s Centre for International Affairs.
• We provide online service on the EU-healthcare.fi website in Finnish, Swedish, English and Northern Sami.
• The Contact Point is also on Twitter, Facebook and SlideShare.

Tasks of the Contact Point

The Contact Point for Cross-Border Health Care compiles, produces and disseminates information, for example,

• on the use of health services in Finland and abroad
• for patients from Finland seeking healthcare abroad and foreign patients seeking healthcare in Finland
• on the reimbursement of medical care costs incurred abroad
• on the European prescription
• on the rights of patients.

The tasks of the Contact Point are regulated by the Act on Cross-Border Health Care.

Each member state of the European Union has its own Contact Point for Cross-Border Health Care. The contact points are responsible for communications and the exchange of information related to cross-border healthcare.

In Finland, the Contact Point is located within Kela, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, where it has functioned since 2014.

EU-healthcare.fi is our main service channel

The Contact Point for Cross-Border Health Care maintains and develops the EU-healthcare.fi online service, which provides information on the use of health services in Finland and abroad. The website provides information on patient rights, treatment costs and their reimbursement as well as healthcare in different countries, among other things. The website has an information section dedicated to healthcare employees.

Our extensive cooperation

We develop our operations together with our customers. You are warmly welcome to join our customer panel. In addition, you can send feedback about the EU-healthcare.fi website using the feedback form.

The Contact Point cooperates with, among others, Kela, the National Institute for Health and Welfare, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, Population Register Centre, patient associations, hospital districts, Patient Insurance Centre, Finnish Medicines Agency Fimea and National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira). The Contact Point maintains an editorial staff of the EU-healthcare.fi online service. In addition, the Government appoints the Advisory Board on Cross-Border Healthcare in conjunction with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health for three years at a time. The task of the Advisory Board is to monitor compliance with the Act on Cross-Border Health Care, make proposals and launch initiatives for developing legislation.

If you are interested in cooperating with the Contact Point, you can reach us at yhteyspiste(at)kela.fi

Vision, mission and values

Our vision is to be a well-known international healthcare expert offering an excellent customer experience.

Our mission is to promote patient rights. We provide information and advice to our customers and partners and we contribute to the field of cross-border healthcare.

Operations in line with our values are

• Customer oriented
• Reliable
• Cooperative
• Proficient

Our strategic objectives

In 2023–2028, we will focus on these strategic priorities:

1. Customer insight: we want to provide an excellent customer experience for our customers and partners.
2. Cooperation: we work together with our partners for the benefit of our customers.
3. Advocacy: we promote patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare.