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Romanian Patient Rights Law amended: scheduling for diagnostic investigations and the right to a second medical opinion introduced
Romania updates the Patient Rights Law. Patients now have the right to scheduling for diagnostic investigations and to a second medical opinion covered by the health insurance system.
Romania’s Patient Rights Law (Law no. 46/2003) has been supplemented by a new act published on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part I, no. 189. The new provisions introduce additional obligations for medical units regarding the scheduling of patients for diagnostic investigations and explicitly establish the right to a second medical opinion covered by the health insurance system.
The amendments were adopted by the Romanian Parliament and complete two important articles of the law: Article 4 and Article 11.
Patient scheduling for diagnostic investigations
The first amendment concerns Article 4 of the Patient Rights Law, where a new paragraph has been introduced requiring healthcare providers to facilitate continuity in the diagnostic process.
According to the new provision, patients have the right to be directed and scheduled for the next consultation or investigation required to establish a diagnosis within the same medical unit where the initial consultation took place.
The scheduling must be carried out through a mechanism organized at the level of the medical institution, with the aim of preventing situations in which patients are left to find the necessary consultations or investigations on their own.
The right to a second medical opinion
Another important amendment concerns Article 11 of the law, which now includes a new paragraph establishing the right of insured persons to obtain a second medical opinion.
Under the new provision, insured patients are entitled to a second medical consultation paid for by the health insurance system, for the purpose of obtaining a second opinion based on existing medical investigations or, if medically justified, additional investigations.
The measure aims to strengthen patients’ rights during the diagnostic process and to allow confirmation or reassessment of an initial medical opinion.
Amendments to the Patient Rights Law
The law adopted by Parliament supplements Law no. 46/2003 on patient rights, which regulates the fundamental rights of patients in the Romanian healthcare system, including access to medical information, informed consent, and the right to appropriate medical care.
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