With the temperatures rising in the festival-filled, holiday-taking month of August, it might be time to consider your health coverage. Even if you are fit as fiddle and a lover of the heat, it is never too soon or too late to make sure that you are insured in the unlikely event that you will need to seek treatment for your health.
Italian Healthcare System
First, keep in mind that the Italian healthcare system, known as the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (SSN), is a publicly funded universal health care system that provides comprehensive medical services to all Italian residents – that includes foreigners (you!). It is based on the principles of solidarity, equality, and accessibility.
What About Emergencies?
This also means that emergency services are provided to all individuals – domestic or foreign – free of charge (with any additional treatments required beyond the emergency situation charged). So, be at ease with any concerns regarding unforeseen incidents.
As for regular medical concerns, this will depend on your visa status as some will require you to have at least a year’s international coverage and so any treatments will go through the plan you’ve taken out. Once you have established yourself as a resident, then you can register for the SSN to be assigned to a general practitioner who can then refer to you to specialists or other experts depending on your needs. More information on this process will be provided in the next volume of Umbria on a Whim (coming soon).
How Do I Get Started?
This site may be helpful in getting you started on this process.
If you are waiting for your permesso, you can still register with your nearest Unità/Aziende Sanitarie Locali (U/ASL – local health authority) using your codice fiscale. However, you will not receive your health card until you are approved for residency; therefore, you may want to wait to do this step after you have received your permesso. Make note that if you have moved or changed addresses in the time of your permesso registration and when you visit the ASL, you will need to confirm your newest address BEFORE you register for the SSN as your tessera sanitaria (health card) will be mailed to your government system registered address.
For more details about what the tessera sanitaria can do for you, check out this document.
You can find more information in Umbria on a Whim: Volume 1 The Basics – an Insider’s Guide for Moving to Umbria.