Public and Private Health Insurance in Barcelona
Public health insurance
Not everyone who lives in Barcelona has automatically the right to get the spanish sanitary card (la tarjeta sanitaria) which gives access to the public hospitals. To get this card it is necessary to have an employment contract or to be self-employed in Spain and to have a spanish social security number (número de seguridad social). You are also required to justify your registration of residency in Barcelona (el empadronamiento). In the town hall you will be given an information about a health center (CAP – centro de atención primaria) that corresponds to your address. In CAP you should present the following documents:
- Passport.
- NIE.
- Registration of residency in Barcelona (el empadronamiento).
- Social security number.
- Employment contract.
Private health insurance
Some advantages of the private insurance:
- an immediate access to the medical specialists,
- a possibility to choose the medical specialists,
- lower waiting time for appointments and treatment,
- more comfortable facilities.
- Insurance with copayment or copay (copago): these are the cheap policies but every time you go to a doctor you have to pay a certain percentage of the examination or intervention.
- Insurance only with NIE: some health insurance companies will sign contract with you only if you have NIE. Some of them can accept the temporal NIE, some require the residency NIE card.
- Payment of the whole year: there are discounts if you pay for the whole year in advance.
The most famous private health insurance companies in Spain:
Sanitas: it is the oldest health insurance company in Spain with more than 2 millions of clients who have the healthcare insurance policies, more than 40.000 medical specialists in 700 medical centres of Spain. It is a partner of BUPA, the UK's leading health insurance company. This company offers cover in Spain, the UK and globally.
Assistència Sanitària: it is a catalan company that offers different plans, from basic to their comprehensive Compensa health plan. It also has an international plan for frequent travellers.
Adeslas: it is one of the biggest spanish private insurance companies that covers a number of national hospitals and clinics throughout the country and provides high-quality health insurance products.
MAPFRE: it is a large international insurance company with 34 millions of clients and 5800 offices worldwide.
MAPFRE: it is a large international insurance company with 34 millions of clients and 5800 offices worldwide.
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