Croatia

Accessing care

With the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), you can receive medically necessary treatment during a temporary stay in Croatia. Medically necessary treatment means treatment that cannot wait until you return home. You may need such treatment, for example, due to sudden illness or an accident.

You can also receive treatment related to pregnancy, childbirth, or chronic illnesses. If you have a condition that requires regular treatment while you are staying abroad, contact a health care provider in advance to arrange the treatment.

The European Health Insurance Card does not guarantee free treatment and you will be charged the same amount as local residents. We recommend carrying additional copies of your card. If you do not have a European Health Insurance Card or if it is not accepted, you will need to pay the cost of treatment yourself. You can then apply for reimbursement from Kela afterward.

Medical services are provided by both public and private health care providers. Private healthcare services with a contract with the Croatian Health Insurance Fund (Hrvatski zavod za zdravstveno osiguranje, HZZO) have the same prices as public healthcare. If instead you deal with health care service providers who do not have such an agreement, you will pay the entire cost of the treatment yourself. Every service provider in the public sector has a special identifier, which shows that the provider is a contractual partner of HZZO, i.e. part of the public healthcare system. The Contact Point of Croatia’s website has a list of healthcare service providers that are part of Croatia’s public healthcare system and that cooperate with the country´s Health Insurance Fund.

In larger localities, tourists are generally referred to a health centre (dom zdravlja). Each municipality has its own health centre responsible for providing basic health care. By presenting your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) you should receive the needed care for the price of co-payment. Tourists are referred, if necessary, to the nearest hospital (bolnica) in larger towns.

There are English-speaking doctors and pharmacists in all the tourist areas. Medical care for tourists during the season is known as “turistička ambulanta”. It is important to bear in mind that “turistička ambulanta” is established only during tourist season, and currently doesn’t have a contract with the Croatian Health Insurance Fund, which means that you have to pay for the care yourself.

Sudden illness

Doctor and Dentist

Choose a doctor or a dentist who has an agreement with HZZO. Present your European Health Insurance Card at the appointment. A referral is usually required in Croatia to consult a specialist. Treatment by a physician is free of charge. Emergency dental treatment is free of charge as well. A client fee is always charged for a visit, however.

Medication

You can obtain medication prescribed by a primary care doctor from a pharmacy (ljekarna) that has a contract HZZO. A prescription is valid for 15 days from the day it was prescribed. An exception to this is a prescription for antibiotics, which is only valid for three days from the day it was prescribed. All pharmacies which dispense prescription drugs have contract with HZZO. Localities in which there is a health centre have the largest number of pharmacies. The opening hours of pharmacies vary.

You can buy medicines in Croatia also with an electronic prescription that your doctor wrote in Finland. You can purchase the medication by showing your passport or official identity card in the pharmacy. Note, however, that not all medicines can be purchased with an electronic prescription abroad. Check the restrictions on the Kanta.fi website. You can claim reimbursement from Kela afterwards.

Hospital treatment

There are hospitals and specialised facilities in all the larger towns, and smaller clinics are located throughout the country. A referral from a primary care doctor is required for hospital treatment. Care is covered by health insurance if the hospital has a contract with HZZO. At the hospital, present your European Health Insurance Card. Ambulance transport in emergencies is free of charge.

If your illness requires you to use special transport when returning to Finland, you will be liable for the travel costs in their entirety. You are recommended to take out a travel insurance that covers these costs.

Read more about suddenly falling ill in Europe.

Read more about reimbursement of costs of treatment abroad.

Useful websites

If you want to travel to Croatia to use healthcare services there, you should read our website for general information about seeking treatment abroad. If you have any questions about healthcare in Croatia, contact the National Contact Point of Croatia.

In Croatia, private healthcare service providers set their own prices. The country’s medical association sets minimum prices for private treatment, but an upper limit has not been specified. Information on prices of treatment is available on the respective websites of each service provide. It is recommended that you check the price with the service provider directly before seeking treatment.

Quality and safety of treatment

In the event of treatment injuries, the legislation and patient insurance of the country providing the treatment is always applied. In case you are unhappy with the treatment you received, you should primarily try to sort the matter out with the treatment provider. The National Contact Point can help you with finding the right authority if you wish to make a complaint.

In Croatia, the Ministry of Health (Ministarstvo zdravstva) monitors the quality of health services and is responsible for licensing. The Ministry regularly publishes information on the quality of care. Hospital-specific quality data is not, however, available. The criteria for the quality and safety of treatment given by hospital and other healthcare providers are currently being determined. If necessary, you can request further information from the Contact Point of Croatia or by contacting directly the Ministry of Health at pitajtenas(at)miz.hr.

Healthcare system

Croatia has a social health insurance system where citizens are expected to contribute according to their ability to pay and receive basic health care services according to their needs. The Croatian Health Insurance Fund (Hrvatski zavod za zdravstveno osiguranje, HZZO) is the sole insurer in the mandatory health insurance system, which provides universal health insurance coverage to the whole population. As the main purchaser of health services, the HZZO plays a key role in the definition and price setting of basic health services covered under statutory insurance and the establishment of performance standards.

The Croatian healthcare system includes both public and private healthcare services. Public healthcare is organized according to the county-based territorial organization at all levels and in all activities (primary and secondary health care). Only the tertiary level (clinical institutions) is formed regionally.

Right to health care for persons insured in Croatia comprises, amongst others, right to primary health care, specialist-consultative and hospital health care, medicines approved by HZZO formal list of medications, dental-aid prosthetic and replacements, orthopedic and other devices and healthcare abroad.