Clinica Tarraula is a private clinic and many, but by certainly no means all, of our patients have some form of private medical insurance. Some of our patients just pay for their medical treatment as and when they need it, whilst others use the National Health system as well as the private sector.
For residents one of the most important aspects of living in Spain is their choice of healthcare. The public health system in Spain is generally good but, like all National Health systems, the waiting lists can be very long and many residents choose to take out some form of private health insurance.
The advantages of having private medical insurance in Spain includes the ability for residents to choose doctors and specialists who speak their own language and have access to immediate investigations, such as blood tests, X-rays and scans, a wider choice of hospitals with virtually non-existent waiting lists.
The disadvantages include the cost of the premiums, particularly if you are over 65 and the understanding of the policy itself.
Obviously before committing yourself to any form of health insurance policy, be sure to read the terms and conditions very carefully (even if the print is very small) and make sure you understand exactly what is not covered by the policy. This is particularly important if you choose a Spanish insurance scheme. |
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At Clinica Tarraula we work with two different types of health insurance:
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- International Health Insurances, such as Exeter, BUPA, PPP, WPA etc. With these schemes the patients are required to pay the clinic for all their medical treatment and then reclaim the amounts involved from their insurance companies.
- Spanish Insurance Schemes, such as ASSSA and ARESA.These schemes provide their clients with a book of vouchers or “Talons” and these vouchers are used to cover consultations and investigations but see our Conditions of Acceptance of Spanish Insurance Schemes
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Conditions of Acceptance of Spanish Insurance Schemes
Clinica Tarraula works closely with the following Spanish insurance companies ASSSA and ARESA but patients with these insurance schemes please note the following points:
- All materials, in the form of injections, medications and dressings (including those used during minor operations) must be paid for by the patient, as these costs are not covered by the insurance policy.
- Also, the clinic is not paid by the insurance companies for the taking of blood. These insurance companies expect the patient to go directly to one of their laboratories, where the blood is taken without an additional charge. The patient then has to return to the laboratory to collect the result and take the results to the doctor for interpretation.
- In order to give our patients the best service possible we offer the choice of having the blood taken by our nurses but a small service charge of 10.00 € is levied. If our nurse takes the blood our receptionist will ask for 2 vouchers - one will be required for the laboratory and another for the interpretation and notification of the results. (This will include a follow-up consultation, when required).
- Patients should also note that the insurance companies will only pay for blood tests and other procedures (such as ear syringing) if these have been requested by a doctor and specifically one of their own doctors.
- No cosmetic or preventative health care is covered by the insurance policy so no vaccinations (such as ‘flu vaccinations, travel or childhood immunisations) are covered. Neither are pre-school medicals or health check-ups of any kind.
- For those patients whose policies include specific annual investigations the patients should note that these are only undertaken at special centres and your insurance agent should be able to tell you which is the nearest one to you.
- Our clinics are not registered with these insurance companies for 24-hour emergency home visits.
Patients can either:
- telephone a clinic that does offer such a service, or
- request a home visit by our duty doctor but in these circumstances the doctor will ask for 1 insurance voucher plus a supplement of 40.00 €
- NB—Patients must be aware that the 40.00 € supplement is not recoverable from their insurance company.
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