Medical help
Any citizen of Ukraine is entitled to benefit from medical services and reimbursement of medications on the territory of Poland if they crossed the country's border after 24 February 2022 and hold a special certificate issued by the Border Guard of the Republic of Poland or a stamp of the Border Guard of the Republic of Poland in the document authorising their arrival in Poland.
The provisions are in force for the facilities that have signed a contract with the NFZ.
Basic medical assistance
Medical services for Ukrainian nationals are provided on the same basis as for Polish nationals, but in each case, they are considered as temporary assistance (assistance for a patient who is “not on the primary healthcare list”). It is not possible to choose a GP, community nurse or midwife on a continuous basis; each visit to a doctor, even at the same GP clinic and to the same doctor, is treated as a singular visit and the patient is asked to complete a declaration each time.
Being recognised as a temporary patient facilitates the settlement between the clinic and the NFZ; the patient is entitled to prescription drugs (partially or fully financed by the state), examinations, mandatory vaccinations, etc. The patient will be asked to provide: personal information (their own or the child's) in an internationally transliterated form, Polish address, PESEL number (if applicable) and identity document number.
Children attending Polish schools are entitled to use the services of the school nurse.
When it comes to oncological diseases one should ask their internist for an electronic referral to an oncologist or to a hospital.
Ukrainian citizens are not entitled to receive treatment in health resorts and spas rehabilitation in health resorts and spas, and to receive treatment abroad or reimbursement of treatment abroad. This is regulated by the cross-border directive.
Working Ukrainian citizens with insurance provided by their employer or agency may choose their doctor, community nurse and midwife within the framework of primary medical care. This can be done either by submitting a written declaration at the respective health centre or via the IKP patient account.
Primary medical care is provided on weekdays between 08:00 and 18:00.
Night care and medical care on weekends and days off
If you need medical assistance at night or on holidays, call +48 800 137 200 (free of charge). The telephone line is in Ukrainian and can be used for medical consultations, e-prescription, referral to a specialist physician or hospital or referral for a COVID-19 test. The line operates from Monday to Friday between 18:00-08:00 and 24 hours a day on public holidays starting from 08:00.
Electronic prescriptions
Prescriptions are issued electronically in Poland. They can be issued by doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics and pharmacists.
In order to receive partial reimbursement for the medications from the NFZ, the prescribing doctor, nurse or clinic must have a contract signed with the NFZ. The pharmacist holds the right to issue a prescription in case of a health emergency, but only for the minimum dose of the given medication and without reimbursement.
A specialist doctor cannot issue a prescription for medications that are not related to the condition being treated.
In order to receive reimbursement, medications have to be on the Ministry of Health list. Each reimbursable medicine has a price limit.
Patients over 75 years of age and pregnant women are entitled to free medications (provided that these medications are featured on free medication list).
If a life-saving or health-saving medication has not been authorised for sale in Poland approval for funding can be sought from the Ministry of Health.
You can receive your e-prescription as: text message with a four-digit code, e-mail with a PDF file, message in the mojeIKP app or in form of a printout from your doctor. You can receive a text message or an e-mail if you set up a patient account and provided phone number and email address. It is possible to heck the dosage of the medication and read the information booklet in the mojeIKP app and in your patient account.
To buy a medicine using an e-prescription, you need to show the pharmacist the QR code on the prescription or provide the four-digit code from the text message, along with your PESEL number. Most prescriptions can be realised within 30 days of issue (antibiotics can only be purchased within seven days of the prescription).