How to use the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) in Romania

If you are visiting Romania from another EU country and need medical care during your stay, your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) can give you access to medically necessary healthcare within the Romanian public health insurance system. The key rule is simple: you need to use healthcare providers that have a contract with a Romanian health insurance house.

The European Health Insurance Card allows people insured in another EU country to receive medically necessary, state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in Romania under the same conditions and generally at the same cost as people insured in Romania.

The system also applies, under the relevant European arrangements, to eligible people insured in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

The card is intended for temporary stays, including holidays, business trips and studies. It does not cover a trip made specifically for the purpose of receiving planned medical treatment.

What should you do if you need medical care in Romania?

If you need non-emergency medical care, you should look for a family doctor, specialist, hospital, dentist or other healthcare provider that has a contract with one of Romania’s local health insurance houses.

This distinction is important. The EHIC does not automatically cover treatment at any private clinic or medical practice. Some private healthcare providers have contracts with the Romanian public health insurance system, while others operate entirely outside it.

The Romanian National Health Insurance House – Casa Națională de Asigurări de Sănătate (CNAS) – publishes information on healthcare providers contracted with the public health insurance system.

If you are unsure whether a clinic, doctor or hospital accepts the EHIC, ask explicitly whether the provider has a contract with the local health insurance house before receiving non-emergency treatment.

What should you do in an emergency?

For a medical emergency in Romania, call 112. This is the national emergency number and can be used to request ambulance and emergency medical assistance.

Emergency services are provided through Romania’s ambulance services and SMURD, the country’s mobile emergency, resuscitation and extrication service.

In a genuine emergency, obtaining medical assistance should take priority over administrative questions about the card.

Can you see a family doctor or specialist with an EHIC?

Yes. To use the EHIC for outpatient medical care, you should consult a family doctor or specialist working for a healthcare provider that has a contract with a local health insurance house.

For healthcare covered under the Romanian public health insurance system, the provider is normally reimbursed by the health insurance house on the basis of the EHIC, rather than asking the patient to pay the full cost.

However, services outside the benefits available through the Romanian health insurance system, services provided on request, or treatment received from a provider without a contract with a health insurance house may have to be paid for by the patient.

Can you go to hospital with an EHIC?

EHIC holders can receive covered hospital care from hospitals that operate under a contract with a Romanian health insurance house.

This includes medically necessary hospital treatment during the temporary stay. According to the European Commission’s information for Romania, covered hospital services include medical and surgical emergencies, certain infectious diseases requiring isolation or quarantine, childbirth and several types of day-hospital treatment.

Emergency hospital admission does not require a referral.

Some costs may nevertheless arise in situations where Romanian insured patients would also have to contribute, or when a patient requests services or accommodation beyond the standard package. Different rules may also apply to certain services provided by private hospitals contracted with the public system.

Does the EHIC cover dental treatment in Romania?

The EHIC can be used for emergency dental care in Romania, provided that the dentist has a contract with a local health insurance house.

Emergency dental services covered by the Romanian public system are reimbursed through the health insurance house. Treatment obtained from a dentist operating entirely outside the public insurance system is not covered by the EHIC.

Can you get prescription medicines with the EHIC?

EHIC holders may obtain medicines covered by the Romanian health insurance system when they have a prescription issued by a doctor who is under contract with a local health insurance house.

The prescription must then be used at a pharmacy that also has a contract with the public health insurance system.

Depending on the medicine, the Romanian system may cover all or only part of its reference price. This means that an EHIC holder may sometimes have to make a personal contribution towards the cost of a prescribed medicine.

Medicines that are not covered by the public health insurance system, as well as medicines obtained from pharmacies outside the contracted system, must generally be paid for by the patient.

What about chronic conditions, dialysis or cancer treatment?

The EHIC is not limited to accidents or sudden illnesses. It covers healthcare that becomes medically necessary during a temporary stay, taking into account the patient’s condition and the expected duration of the stay.

This principle can also apply to pre-existing and chronic conditions. The European Commission specifically lists a number of services available to eligible EHIC holders in Romania, including dialysis, oxygen therapy, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and certain treatments delivered through national health programmes.

If you know before travelling that you will require highly specialised treatment, such as dialysis, you should contact an appropriate Romanian provider in advance. Having an EHIC does not guarantee that a particular facility will have capacity available at the time you need treatment.

Does the EHIC cover pregnancy and childbirth?

Medically necessary healthcare related to pregnancy is covered during a temporary stay, and the Romanian system also provides for childbirth under the EHIC arrangements.

There is an important distinction, however: the EHIC cannot be used when the purpose of travelling to Romania is specifically to obtain planned medical treatment. This includes situations in which a person travels abroad specifically to give birth and planned-care rules therefore apply.

Is healthcare completely free with an EHIC?

Not necessarily. The EHIC gives you access to healthcare under the same rules that apply to people insured in Romania; it is not a guarantee that every medical service will be free.

You may have to pay, for example, for:

• services that are not included in the healthcare package covered by the Romanian public health insurance system;
• care provided by doctors, clinics or hospitals that do not have a contract with a local health insurance house;
• medical services requested by the patient but not covered by the public system;
• medicines that are not reimbursed, or the patient’s contribution towards partially reimbursed medicines;
• higher-standard hospital accommodation or other optional services;
• certain additional costs in contracted private hospitals, where such payments also apply under Romanian rules.

This is why travellers should check that a healthcare provider accepts the EHIC before receiving non-emergency care.

The EHIC is not a substitute for travel insurance

The European Commission stresses that the European Health Insurance Card is not an alternative to travel insurance.

In particular, the EHIC does not cover private healthcare obtained outside the public insurance system, repatriation or a return flight to your home country, or costs associated with lost or stolen belongings.

It also does not cover healthcare when the purpose of your trip is specifically to receive planned medical treatment abroad.

For these reasons, travellers may still wish to have separate travel insurance even when they carry a valid EHIC.

What if you have forgotten or lost your EHIC?

If you have forgotten or lost your card and need treatment while in Romania, contact the health insurance institution that issued your EHIC in your home country.

It may issue a Provisional Replacement Certificate (PRC). According to the European Commission, the certificate provides the same entitlement to medically necessary healthcare as the EHIC for the period covered by the document.

This can be particularly important when hospital treatment is required.

A practical checklist for travellers in Romania

• Carry a valid EHIC issued by your health insurance institution.
• For emergencies, call 112.
• For non-emergency care, choose a provider contracted with a Romanian local health insurance house.
• Tell the healthcare provider that you are insured in another European country and want to use your EHIC.
• For prescriptions, use both a contracted doctor and a contracted pharmacy.
• Ask about possible patient contributions before non-emergency treatment.
• If your card is lost or forgotten, contact your home health insurance institution and request a Provisional Replacement Certificate.
• Remember that the EHIC does not replace comprehensive travel insurance.

Where to find official information

The European Commission provides a dedicated guide to using the European Health Insurance Card in Romania, including information on doctors, hospitals, dental services, prescriptions, emergency care and treatments for chronic conditions.

Information about Romanian healthcare providers working under contract with the public insurance system is available through the National Health Insurance House (CNAS) and Romania’s local health insurance houses.