Healthcare abroad
Healthcare in Spain: use your GHIC, dodge the private bill
Your GHIC gets you state healthcare on the same terms as Spanish residents. The FCDO warns that hotels and tour reps often call private doctors or ambulances to private hospitals, which don't accept the GHIC. Ask for the state system, or call your insurer first.
- GHIC accepted
- Some free urgent care
- No free healthcare
- Very high costs
Spain's public health system is good, and in the resorts there's usually a state health centre (centro de salud) within a short drive. The problem is that private clinics are often closer, open longer and work with hotels. You'll be treated well, but the bill is yours unless your insurer has agreed to it.
Where care differs
- State health centres and hospitalsGHIC accepted
Show your GHIC and passport. Prescriptions carry a patient charge, as they do for locals.
- Private clinics in resortsNo free healthcare
Often called by hotels. The GHIC isn't accepted, so phone your insurer before treatment.
- Canary and Balearic IslandsGHIC accepted
Same rules. Smaller islands may fly serious cases to Tenerife, Gran Canaria or Palma.
Saying the right words
At reception, ask for treatment 'por la seguridad social, con la tarjeta sanitaria'. If staff start talking about payment or forms in English, check you're not in a private clinic.
Before you go
- Pharmacies (farmacia, green cross) give good advice for minor problems.
- Emergency number: 112.
- Keep receipts for any charges and claim from NHS Overseas Healthcare Services when home.
Official advice: FCDO health advice for Spain
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