Medical visits

No user charges are payable in Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland.

The following charges are payable for primary care at health centres:

• A fixed annual user charge of no more than EUR 41.70 in a year, or
• A fixed user charge per visit of no more than EUR 20.90. The user charge is payable for the first three visits to the same health centre in the same calendar year only

A user charge of EUR 28.70 is payable for visits to health centres on working days between 8 pm and 8 am and for visits on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. The charges do not apply to people under the age of 18.

Reimbursement of private physicians' fees is based on fixed charges. The National Social Insurance Institution reimburses a fixed amount of the physician’s fee, an amount which is considerably lower than the actual charge.

For medical consultations within the primary health service at a clinic, at specialized health centres and for home visits, there is a user charge of EUR 30. The user charge for a visit to a casualty department is EUR 50. Children and young people under the age of 18 pay half of the user charge. If there is a waiting period of 45 minutes or more in connection with a scheduled visit, the user charge is reimbursed.

Primary health care

The user charge for a consultation in primary health care during working hours is ISK 500. Outside normal working hours, the charge is ISK 3 100. These charges do no not apply to children, pensioners and disabled people. Preventive health care consultations for pregnant women and parents with infants are free of charge and so is school health care. Charges for home visits are ISK 3 400 during daytime, while user charges for evenings and nights are ISK 4 500. There is no charge for home visits to children, pensioners and disabled people.

Out-patient treatment

The user charges for out-patient treatment in hospitals is ISK 3 895 and ISK 2 526 for pensioners and disabled people. The user’s charges for visits to an emergency unit is ISK 7 053 and ISK 4 632 for pensioners and disabled people. Children under the age of 18 are exempt from paying user charges for out-patient treatment in hospitals.

Private specialists

The user charges for a consultation with a private specialist is 90 per cent of agreed fees for the visit. Pensioners and disabled people pay 2/3 of what others pay for a visit. Children under the age of 18, referred by the primary health care, do not pay a fee for a visit to a private specialist. Children, 2-17 years old, who do not have a referral pay 1/3 of the service fee until the payment threshold is reached.

Hospital stay

In-patient hospital treatment is free of charge to all.

The Norwegian somatic hospital sector is based on a financing model that combines block grants and fee-for-service financing. Fee-for-service financing is based on the principle that a service provider is paid on the basis of services rendered. The state reimburses a percentage of the average DRG expenses (Diagnosis Related Groups) in connection with treatment of patients.

Patients only pay a fixed part of the cost for public health services. User charges for consultation with general practitioners: NOK 160 (day) and NOK 280 (evening/night). User charges for consultations with a specialist are NOK 375 (2021). Patients that use private treatment providers, who do not have reimbursement agreements, have to cover all the costs themselves.

In the public health service user fees from treatment by a doctor, physiotherapist, psychologist, outpatient clinic, laboratory and X-ray institute can provide user fee credit towards exemption cards. There may also be user fees for medicines on "blue prescription", some dental treatments, some rehabilitation stays and some treatment trips abroad.

When the ceiling for user charges is reached, patients are eligible for an exemption card (frikort for helsetjenester) valid for the rest of the calendar year. The ceiling or the upper limit is set annually by the Norwegian Parliament. From January 2021, there is one single exemption card scheme in Norway, instead of two schemes, as before. This means that patients can use the same exemption card for all the health services that are currently covered by the two different exemption cards. The new user fee ceiling is NOK 2 460 (2021). The user fees are registered automatically.

Patients must pay any expense that are not approved user fees. These expenses do not count towards your exemption card for health services. This could be fees for bandages and equipment which is necessary for treatment.

Some groups are exempt from paying user fees for examination and treatment by a doctor. For example this applies to: children under the age 16, children and adolescents under the age of 18 who receive psychotherapeutic treatment, patients who have received a decision concerning an occupational injury, soldiers serving compulsory military service (førstegangstjeneste), pregnant women attending antenatal checkups, patients suffering from an infectious disease which constitutes a risk to public safety, such as the coronavirus (coronavirus, 2019-nCoV/SARS-CoV-2), chlamydia and gonorrhoea, and persons suspected of having such a disease and initial medical examination for individuals seeking emergency care after being subjected to violence in close relationships and/or sexual abuse.

The user fee for first contact with a physician in primary care – physical or virtual consultation - varies between 100 and 300 SEK.

The fees for outpatient specialist visits vary between 200 - 400 SEK. The fee is often lower when patients have been referred from primary care. Outpatient care is free of charge for children and youth, as well as for patients 85 years or older.

Screening for breast cancer and cervix cancer is free of charge in Sweden. Regional health authorities apply different variable rules and conditions regarding fees and to be eligible for interventions, such as in vitro fertilization treatment.

Patient fees for vaccinations vary across the country.