Slovenia
In emergencies call 112 to obtain help.
Accessing care
With the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), you can receive medically necessary treatment when you are temporarily staying in Slovenia. 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.
You can receive treatment with the European Health Insurance Card within public healthcare and from private doctors who have a contract with the Health Insurance Institute of Slovania (i.e. Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije, ZZZS).
You can receive emergency and essential care free of charge as Slovenia’s mandatory health insurance fully covers the costs. You can find more information about the costs of health care services and medicines on the website of the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia.
Sudden illness
Doctor
See a general practitioner (zdravnik splošne medicine) at a health centre or a private doctor who has a contract with ZZZS. Show your European Health Insurance Card and your identity card. You can see a specialist after receiving a referral from a general practitioner. You can search for a healthcare provider with the search engine provided by the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia.
Dentist
Dental care is available from health centres or dentists who have contracts with the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia. Show your European Health Insurance Card when going to the dentist.
Medication
You can get the medicines from pharmacies (lekarna) when you present the doctor’s prescription and your European Health Insurance Card. Costs of medicinal products that are classified on the positive list are fully covered by compulsory health insurance. You can purchase medicines at any pharmacy, which has an agreement with the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia. Medicines given during hospitalization are included in the treatment and do not need to be paid for separately.
You can find more information about prescription medicines in Slovenia from the website of the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia.
Hospital treatment
A general practitioner or specialist will usually provide you with a referral for hospital care. In an emergency, you can go straight to the first aid unit (urgenca) of the nearest hospital. At the reception, show your European Health Insurance Card and your identity card. First aid is free.
You do not have to pay for emergency ambulance transport, if the attending physician states that the need for transport was urgent.
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 Slovenia to use healthcare services there, you should read our website for general information about seeking treatment abroad.
You should direct your questions about healthcare in Slovenia to the Slovenian National Contact Point for cross-border healthcare.
Quality and safety of treatment
Doctors and dentists operating in Slovenia belong to the Slovenian Medical Association. They are required to renew their doctor’s or dentist’s licence every seven years.
The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Slovenia, the National Health Insurance Institute and the medical associations supervise the quality and safety of healthcare service providers and professionals operating in Slovenia.
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.
Healthcare system
Slovenia has a social health insurance system with a single public insurer, the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (Zavod za zdravstveno zavarovanje Slovenije, ZZZS), providing universal compulsory health insurance. The Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia represents the interests of the people it insures in negotiations related to health service programs and their implementation. Since the Health Insurance Institute is the main supplier of health services, it also plays a key role in the price formation of services.
In addition, private companies provide voluntary health insurance in Slovenia, which patient use to cover co-payments.
Most of the care is provided by state-owned health care providers (hospitals, most specialised polyclinics and highly specialised care) and municipally owned health care providers. However, the Slovenian health care system also has an increasing number of private health care providers, especially in the fields of primary care and specialised care. More than half of the country’s dental care service providers are private. If the patient uses a service provider that does not have an agreement with the Health Insurance Institute, the patient pays the expenses.