Hi all,

I would like to know if the Swiss Basic Health Insurance cover medical treatments (not emergencies) outside Switzerland. Particularly I need to have a surgery in Italy and I wonder if I can get reimbursement for it or not. Can anybody help?

Cheers
Cristiano

Talk to your insurance company, they may welcome your idea as it will be cheaper.

Is it not possible to have this surgery in Switzerland? It will certainly be more expensive, but it would be less administrative hassle.

On the other hand, ask your insurance company what they think.

The administrative hassle should be minimal. Patient pays hospital, sends receipt to insurer, insurer pays patient. That's what happens with emergency treatment, don't see why it should be different for planned.

I'll guess it depends of which Insurance package you have. Since we travel a lot, our little family is fully cover for any situation that could occur outside the country.

You should give them a call.

As far as I am aware, your basic insurance does not cover discretionary hospital stays in other countries. Even if you have overseas cover this is for emergencies only.......

I'm not sure that 'occurring' is the same thing as deciding off one's own bat to have an operation abroad. I think Swiss Insurance likes to know what it is paying for. I'm not saying that you are not covered abroad Nil, but I bet it costs and arm and a leg if it covers USA too.

I type slower than the guy above!

I couldn't say. I know that we had an emergency in the US last year and end up at the hospital. It was for sickness not surgery, so definitely not the same bill, but we paid it from our credit card and when we came back, we send the bill to the insurance who paid without a blink of the eyes.

When we went this year, the pregnancy was also covered in case of an emergency overthere.

For the rest, I don't know much that's why I suggested to ask the insurances company itself.

I should had that we don't have ''just'' the basic insurance, we also have the supplementary insurance, and I should guess that it is the part that cover us abroad...

This is what Simonminisale and I meant. Emergencies, whether the result of an accident or a medical condition, are simply not the same thing as a personal decision to have medical treatment abroad, whatever form this takes and whatever the reason behind it.

I couldn't agree more, the health insurance must know what is going on before to have the treatment done somewhere else.

My insurance covers me worldwide for emergencies, but specifically says that in the US cover is only up to 2 Million francs, advising you to get additional cover if your going there... which I must do, so thanks for the reminder!

Hi Cristiano,

If you leave Switzerland, on purpose, to go specially to a hospital in Italy (or any other country), NOTHING WILL BE REMBURSED. If you are allready in Italy, anch you have to go in a hospital, you will be coverd only with a minimum participation. If you want to be covered much more, you must subscrib complementary insurance. Siamo specialisti in assicurazioni!

Hoping to have you help you,

best regards

David (parlo anche italiano)