Health insurance for pre-established medical treatment abroad

The expert group assesses whether the conditions for medical treatment abroad are fulfilled, as defined in Article 8 of the Act on health insurance no. 112/2008. The group is made up of 5 specialist physicians and a lawyer and the chair of the committee is the chief doctor.

The committee meets once a month. An application with the necessary information must be available so that the committee can consider whether it is acceptable to accept it. See application here on the right. Individuals can apply themselves, but then detailed medical documentation must accompany the application, see below, but it is recommended that therapist fill out the application.

Note that you must always apply for prior approval to Iceland Health, which must be available before treatment is carried out. If an application is approved, the total cost of medical treatment is paid in full, along with travel and maintenance costs.

Once the case has been approved, contact is made with Icelandair, who is in charge of booking the flight, and the flight is then paid for by Iceland Health. Application for daily allowance for maintenance costs is on the right, no documents need generally accompany an application for daily allowance but further documents will be requested if necessary.

The following conditions must be fulfilled in order for Iceland Health to be authorized to accept payments for medical treatment abroad:

• that there is an urgent need for medical treatment abroad

• that it is not possible to provide the necessary assistance in Iceland

• that the medical treatment is accepted

Instead of a patient going to receive treatment abroad, Iceland Health can decide that a specialist physician working abroad will provide a patient with treatment in a hospital in Iceland if all necessary conditions are fulfilled.

If an application for medical treatment abroad has been approved, please note the following:

• Treatment costs are paid.

• Travel, maintenance and possible companionship costs are paid.

• Iceland Health pays the patient's fare from Iceland to the place where treatment is planned and back again. The fare is also refunded nationally according to special rules on travel costs.

• If the patient is under 18 years of age, travel allowance may be paid for both parents or two closest relatives, as appropriate.

• Iceland Health pays daily allowances for necessary support costs for a patient outside a hospital as well as support costs for an companionship. In the case of children, Iceland Health pays full daily allowances to one parent but half to the other. Children under four years of age receive one-quarter of the daily allowance, while those between four and eleven years of age receive half the daily allowance.

• Iceland health pays only maintenance daily allowance for the days that are medically necessary to stay abroad, there is no authorization to pay for overtime or when an individual chooses to stay longer to receive services that can be obtained in Iceland.

• Couples may participate in the costs of assisted reproductive technology if they cannot receive adequate treatment in Iceland. Couples participate in the costs of treatment in the same way as if assisted reproductive technology had been performed in Iceland. Full daily allowance is paid for one spouse, but half for the other during the stay outside the hospital.

• If treatment is chosen at a different and more expensive location than the maritime committee has approved, Iceland Health will pay only the cost it would have borne to pay for comparable services at a cheaper location.

• If circumstances are such that a healthcare professional must accompany a patient, Iceland Health will pay a travel grant to the patient.

The list below shows both the number of applications and payments in 2007-2017. Payments in the summary are categorised by diagnosis.

How can you send us your applications and the necessary documents?

• Send applications together with data with secure data submission via Data submission for individuals or the treating physician's Gagnagátt

• Bring the application and documents to our Service Center at Vínlandsleið 16. You can get help filling out the applications there