LITHUANIA | Emergency | Healthcare system
Healthcare in Lithuania
The Lithuanian National Health System (LNHS) provides both personal and public health services. It operates at both state and municipal levels and comprises three "grades" of health care provision. Institutions providing health care may be private or public.
Primary health care services (grade 1) are available to all Lithuanian residents and are focused on patients' basic health issues. Patients first consult their family physician who decides what kind of help is needed and if it is necessary to consult a specialist. Family practitioner services are funded by the National Health Insurance Fund. Current legislation states that everyone is free to choose the family physician and health care institution which is either closest to his/her place of residence or most convenient. In recent years, the number of private primary health care institutions has grown rapidly. These institutions usually employ one or more family physicians. Private primary health care institutions have contracts with the National Health Insurance Fund which means that there are no charges for family physician services.
Secondary and tertiary health care services (grades 2 and 3), which are classified respectively as ambulatory and stationary, are provided by municipal health care institutions, working under the Ministry of Health. Secondary and tertiary health care services are provided via a compulsory health insurance scheme. Secondary and tertiary health care institutions, such as university hospitals, offer highly specialized and skilled health care services including those requiring the use of complex diagnostic technology and treatment methods. The patient also has the right to choose the secondary or tertiary care institution and physician.
In Lithuania, emergency medical assistance is provided free of charge to anyone working in the country (the cost of health care is covered by taxes) and to citizens of the EU in possession of a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) or having a provisional certificate of insurance replacing the EHIC. Citizens from countries outside the EU should have private health insurance. Without either the EHIC or private insurance, patients will be charged for any medical treatment they receive. Anyone from outside Lithuania is advised to go directly to a hospital (Grade 3 institution) in case of medical emergency.
Emergency medical care
The system for providing emergency medical assistance in Lithuania has no particular exceptional features. The emergency phone number for medical assistance is 112. It should be noted that doctors and medical staff do not always speak good English, especially those belonging to an older generation. Documents are also written in Lithuanian.
Nationals from other countries should note that only Grade 3 hospitals provide a full package of emergency medical services. If there are no Grade 3 hospitals in a particular town, other health care institutions will provide assistance.
Ambulance transport is free of charge.
Significant constraints on the availability of emergency medical care
The average waiting time for an ambulance (from call to arrival) is 16 min. Although complaints about the emergency medical services have recently decreased, a number of problems still remain in relation to the provision and financing of ambulance services. The emergency medical services are severely stretched due to an ever increasing number of calls, the relative inaccessibility of health care services, especially in primary healthcare institutions, and the fact that there is a shortage of specialists able to work with ambulance crews. Only about 35% of all patients delivered by ambulance to hospitals are actually admitted.
Research shows that the number of family physicians in Lithuania is sufficient, but they are unevenly distributed, leaving some municipalities without. In Vilnius, patients wait about 7 days for an appointment with a doctor. In private institutions the wait can be reduced to 3 days, and in public institutions the wait can be as long as 12 days.
Doctors' surgeries
You can consult any doctor who works with one of the territorial patient funds. Treatment is free of charge if you can present your EHIC as well as your passport. Any costs incurred for private healthcare are non-refundable.
Dentists
Dental care will be covered by your EHIC if you consult a dentist who works with one of the territorial patient funds. You will be charged for any dental materials used in treatment, e.g. fillings. However, around 80% of the dentists in Lithuania practice privately. Charges for their services will not be reimbursed.
Hospital treatment
In an emergency, you can visit any emergency hospital department in Lithuania. Present your EHIC and passport on admission to the hospital. In all other cases, you will have to get a doctors referral. If you seek non-emergency hospital treatment without a referral, you will have to pay the full costs.
Prescriptions
The Lithuanian Ministry of Health has approved a price list of prescription medicines, where basic prices and co-payments are indicated. Basic prices are reimbursed by the VLK (state patient fund) and co-payments are covered by the patients. If a certain drug is not included in the price list, you will have to pay the full price yourself. These costs are not refundable.