Healthcare in Portugal

Hi Julien,

The Portuguese healthcare system used to be really good. However, due to the severe Austerity measures imposed by Brussels(cost cutting)many doctors, specialists and nurses were told they were no longer required, and basically made redundant to cut costs. In fact, our own centre de saude (Health centre) made 3 doctors redundant and now there is only one doctor available. Be warned many (most) of the doctors at local centres (depending on location) do not (wont) speak English.

We have private medical cover which I think was a requirement of residency (but dont quote me)We use the doctors surgery at the private hospital now. The cost of seeing a doctor privately is about 40 euros from memory for a prebooked appointment. These doctors are usually German or Dutch (from my experience) and speak EXCELLENT English. The cost of the Portuguese national doctors is now 5 euros per appointment and they may or may not speak English. You pays your money and takes your choice! (Some appointments are covered on your insurance; it really depends why you are seeing a doctor)

If you join an organisation called AFPOP (association for foreign residents in Portugal) you receive discounted health cover. www.afpop.com

I personally would not use the Portuguese healthcare system through choice as they are cutting costs and services. I used to think the Portuguese system was great and far better than the UK

If you are not a resident, perscription medicines can be very expensive as you will not receive discount.

I agree with pigletinportugal and I just want to say something more.

Unfortunately Portugal has really bad politicians ( well, they are just being perfect in this job of stealing money from tax payers just as all the others do, the problem is that the Portuguese politicians give nothing back ) who did destroyed the social security system and as told before no one suppose to trust the state health care system anymore.

The alternative is to subscribe insurance policies, buy private hospitals membership cards, politicians once again managed to create such a situation where now we can see many private hospitals around the area and 2012 and 2013 are the deadlines for performing what they ( and this is not only here, you will see the same happening everywhere bit a bit from now on ) have planned, which is push people to go to private health care while the state saves more money ( our money to be spent with the BCE and the BEI and FMI and Brussels have quite many other deep hole financial reasons to steal more money from tax payers everywhere in Europe, wait and see that coming in the next months ).

It is possible to find good prices from private hospitals but be very careful before you hire one of those, try to have a list of their doctors and find out about them first, what sort of cooperation protocols do they have with the different insurance companies and it´s policies, then make your choice.

Once again I have to say, before you agree with any private hospital ASK a writing letter from them with all terms and conditions, read them all and sign it up only after. I mean read those very tiny letters for nobody read, read it! Because you can change one or many paragraphs if you sit with the administrator or director of such hospital.

I can tell you exactly how to do it as I usually do it for many people, I do not charge for advice, I am totally against it.

Just one guideline to help you consider what is good and what is not.

In the central Algarve it is possible to find the perfect offer for both ages, over 65 years and below it.

Over 65 years old you can get membership card for € 10.00 per year and get in exchange 15% Discount in General Practice Appointments and Specialties like:

Emmergency Department;
Hospital (includes daily costs, anesthesia, operating room and recovery);
Exams ( X-Ray, Electrocardiography, Clinical Analysis Service);
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service;

But there is more that comes within this offer;

Below 65 years old it is possible to get 20% discount when you get the membership card for € 120.00 per year. Here again there is much more benefits included.

If we think about the national health care system ( state ) with all those changes implemented recently we have to simply forget it about, who´s going to put his / her own health care in this new reality´s "hands"?

As I usually say "it is enough one regular person to find disease in his life" while special people finds health, by making the right choices in life, food, rest, air, exercise, complimentary ways of balancing health in his / her body, visiting natural therapists, meditating, making long walks along the coastal areas, etc.

I hope this helped someone.

Hi somabonus,

Thank you for your contribution!

One of the main reasons I have wanted to visit and possibly move there was that I was hoping to be able to get affordable health care as an expat, and that this health care would be good quality.  After reading this and other posts on other websites, it sounds like those days might be over.  Other websites say that expats are struggling with higher health care costs for poorer quality of care.  This seems to be the trend worldwide.

Hi,

In order to help expats and soon-to-be expats, we would like to invite you to share your experience on this topic, with updated info on the healthcare system.

Thank you in advance,

Julie
Expat.com Team

I went to a hospital in the Azores to get a health exam for a Portuguese driver's license (which I did not receive yet after almost 3 months of waiting and I am unable to travel to other countries now as they took away my home country's DL and did not give me any photo id, told me to come back in 6 months if I don't receive my PT DL by then) and to get a prescription for a medication. I paid 2€ in advance and then a nurse saw me (or doctor's assistant?), who spoke English, and she asked me what medicine I wanted and there was no weighing, temperature measurement, no checking my body blood pressure, nothing, it was quick and devoid of any even simplest procedures. Then I was given a prescription for medicine (blood pressure medication) without measuring my blood pressure but the nurse did ask me what was my blood pressure, if I knew it, and I told her I am not sure as I measured it a year ago and I was unable to find a blood pressure monitor in the stores or farmacia yet. Then the nurse prescribed me blood pressure medicine (certain size milligram tablets for certain blood pressure level as she probably could see on my what was my b/p just looking into my eyes) and gave me a health exam passed document. That's it. I appreciate the savings of paying just 2€ as opposed to $200 in USA or another country, so I can't complain.

Regarding FARMACIA, if you really lucky the farmacists will speak English to you, but most of the time I am unlucky and I am struggling to say anything in Portuguese, but the farmacists realising I can't understand keeps on saying it in Portuguese (it is their right, the farmacia is in a very touristy area though) and I feel rude by not being able to learn Portuguese in those 3 months that I live here so far, or even as a tourist, a visitor. So, learning the language proficiently is essential even for tourists visiting Portugal and the Azores and I am thinking if I can't learn Portuguese I will have to move out, since I don't want to be rude to the locals by not being able to speak beyond Bom Dia, Boa Tarde, Obrigado and a few phrases. My memory is weak lately. The grammar and the whole language seems quite difficult to learn, especially at a later age.

Farmacia seems quite fashionable design, but they lack some medicines, even Vitamin C they did not have and one farmacia did not have an Emergency Kit box for a car or for a home. I told them "Vitamin C" and "Vitamina Tse" and "Vitamino Se" but they all they had was one kind at one of the farmacias that is mixed with some other stuff, like a powder substance. I guess one must buy oranges and eat lots of them to supplement my Vitamic C requirements.

So the place is affordable to live, but its a daily struggle. People seem smiling on the road mostly and when my car broke down unfortunately no one stopped to help even that I was stopping them. I think in general it is a nice country to live, with beautiful views and a good climate. Excellent place to live despite some little issues that can be easily overcome by patience.

Hi. When I first arrived in Portugal my company didn't provide health insurance and when I needed to be seen, once for a twisted knee and a few other times for internal health issues, I asked around and actually went to the Hospital Santa Maria in Lisbon. Although wait times were long, I did get treatment and it was very inexpensive. Although public health is available, it is sometimes a pain in the backside - as most times they don't have records of previous visits etc. The proper process is to register with your local "Centro de Saude", your local health clinic. Again, the wait times are long and they do not always speak English which was a problem for me. After a few months I found out that I could go to BCP Millenium bank and sign up for a private health plan, called Medis. It cost me 42 euros per month and was an excellent plan. I was able to recieve excellent health care at Hospital da Luz, one of the best hospitals in Lisbon, with all the facilities you can think of. My co pay for a doctors visit was 15 euros. I had to have an MRI at one point and I only paid 60 euros as a co pay. Unheard of in the United States, where I lived before. You are lucky to get an MRI there unless you are dying and then it costs an arm and a leg.
I am now covered under a company plan and still go to Hospital da Luz when I need treatment for any health issues. I have a general doctor there now and an OB/GYN and I have found that preventative medicine is second to none here. Hope this helps.

I would say, first of all, it depends where you live. If you are in a small town, forget it. I could not get any of the medical exams that I really need. They would tell me that it's because of my age. I'm 72, so I no longer need a mamogram??? I bet the native Portuguese get them at any age. When we had medical in Oporto, our family doctor was always in and out of the mental institution, no it is not a joke, so it was difficult to get the proper care, and we could not change our family doctor. Now, we depend totally on the medical insurance through my husband's job, and the visits to a private doctor are not cheap. If you have an emergency, and go to a GOOD CLEAN hospital, you will get good care, but you will wait hours! I would not say the care is very good here. You definitely need a good medical insurance plan through a quality insurance company.

getting a private health insurance plan at 72 is just hard ( see impossible ) for any nationality in Portugal.
You will get stuck with our "socalist" ( as some americans call it ) national health coverage, and so many Portuguese dont even have a "family doctor ( médico de família ).
When expats are prospecting for a destination with good medical cares, Thailand is widely selected for that reason.

I've heard that France has # 1 best healthcare in the world. I suggest eating healthy is preventive rather than treatment. I try to eat healthy, a healthy diet most of the time and so far I don't need much doctors, except when they make it mandatory to see a doctor. Avoid salt, bad fats, chemicals in food, MSG etc. and in most cases you will be fine and live to 100. The well forgotten secret is to drink 2,5 litres of pure  spring water every day and eat 10 times more vegetables than meat. Healthcare is for accidents and bad eaters.

P.S.
avoid genetically modified food, aspartame, the list is long, all the E-s etc.

It's always importante to have a healthy diet, however, YOU NEED A GOOD DOCTOR AND QUALITY MEDICAL CARE, and in Portugal, you must have quality medical insurance. Sorry, but people get sick regardless of how much they practice having a healthy lifestyle.

Unfortunately, it  is not as easy to get quality healthcare in Oporto. The quality of life in Lisbon is MUCH better by far! I hope to find a place to live there as soon as possible. As I already said, it is important to have private health insurance. You are so right!

Hi everybody,

Please note that some off topic posts have been removed from this thread.
It is best that we continue to discuss on the Health system in Portugal only please.

Thanks

Priscilla 

Pracilla, thank you so much! I'm on here to meet others who are in the same boat as I am, and to give the newbys help.

Sincerely,
Eileen Vicente

Does anyone know of a good doctors office in Oporto who is taking patients? Ideally near Maia... We have Medicare insurance, which seems ok, the co payments aren't too bad. Before properly sorting we went to centro de saude and I paid €36 to be seen but my less than 1 year old son didn't have to pay anything. The main problem was waiting in the waiting room for 4 hours hoping we might be seen that day while myself and my baby were sick (not fun).

A good medical insurance plan would be the best thing for you and your family, believe me. It should cover dental, medical, and vision. Also, if you get auto insurance through, I think it's called AAA, you can have a doctor come to your house for 10 euros. It's really inexpensive to have AAA too. There is an office in Oporto. Good luck! Eileen Vicente

The Azores was our favourite pick. We finally abandon the idea because of the language, health and difficult administration. The story of the driving licence is not normal as in principle you keep yours until the new one is ready.
I made the mistake in not wasting time in choosing a place to retire. Overall, by now, I consider that no place is good in all Europe, may be Luxemburg if you spend the winter in the Canarias or elsewhere in the sun. But when you are getting old, you must stay, and no place is better than home, even if now I consider mine too far from what it was.
If I could go back 10 years, I would definitly go to Chile, Argentine or Panama in the mountains. At least Spanish is easier to learn and those countries are not distorded by tourism.

I too would not pick any place in Europe if I had it to do all over again. Private health insurance is the best. Perhaps Algarve would be good for you, because most people are Brits and speak English! Good luck! Eileen Vicente

Oh, I didn't know how difficult it is to get healthcare as a senior here. I get mine through my baby husband who is 13 years my junior. I guess I'm lucky. I'd never live here if I had it to do over. After 35 you are considered old, so I guess that's why they play games with insurance. Because of my age, I can not get even a mamogram here through public health care, because they consider me too old. It's really horrible. I had a big fight with the Public system in Santo Tierso, because the only thing they would do for me was to treat me when I was really ill. It's also who you know. You bet they discriminate here in Portugal! Eileen Vicente

Better to take a private healthcare ensurance. In Portugal you can have a nice ensurance for 40 € mouthly. The public healthcare is very bad.

There will always be complainers who are looking for a paradise brought to them on a golden platter. Azores are an excellent destination for any age. One can always find a person here who speaks English and make a lot of Portuguese friends. Excellent place to live despite some little issues that can be easily overcome with patience and understanding.

the private healthcare system in portugal is excellent!
while on a house-hunting  trip in lourinha last year, my husband got  a very serious infection.
went to the ER @peniche, but sadly, the hospital did not have the facilities needed for a very severe infection. he got transferred to clinica cuf in torres vedras but the attending doctor decided to transfer us to cuf descubertas in lisbon where  my husband stayed in the ICU with a diagnosis of septic shock: foci of infection: tonsils; mediatinitis with multiple abscesses.
the doctors and the nurses and the aides all helped nurse my husband back to health. everything was explained in english .after 2 weeks in ICU, he was well enough to be transferred to a room upstairs for further care.
all in all our portugal experience did not discourage us from ever going back to our dream, it made us more determined than ever, knowing that there are very competent doctors and nurses over there to help when the need comes unexpected. we had help from unexpected source - silena  antunis who helped with the language barrier and served as a contact between myself and the hospital.
having a good health and hospitalisation insurance helped us a lot.

Regarding heathcare system in Portugal, do not confuse relatively young active people with retirees that Portugal wants to attract.
I would have moved to Portugal and participate to the economy at least ten years ago, but I had to backup and abandon the idea as health coverage was astronomical (Cigna) if not  rip off just because it is a business mainly in the hands of forein countries....
I am not going to enter in heathcare discussions, I know by experience that countries who want to rule the world do not have even an heathcare system like France, Belgium and other humanized countries.
Looking at the world behavior, I do not think the young of today will reach the 70's but for sure, I am certain that if Portugal was offering an healthcare system like France, many retirees will relocate and contribute to the Portugeese economy....not so brillant todate.

Glad to hear that you were lucky! I don't like the vision center of Kuf in Oporto! They are only there to get as much Money as possible. On the other hand, so far, Boa Vista Hospital emergency room, vision center, and dental clinic have been great! Stay away from dental clinic chains. They are horrible here! I could write a book about the bad experiences I have had with dental clinics here.