You can sign a contract in Italy or abroad with any private insurance company, as long as it meets the following requirements:
validity in Italy;
coverage of all disease risk claims;
coverage of medical expenses (€ 30,000 minimum);
coverage of emergency medical evacuation and repatriation of remains;
the validity period must be clearly stated and it has to be equal to the residing period in Italy;
clear indications for claims;
legal translation in Italian, in case the insurance policy is signed in another Country;
a national office established in Italy to be contacted in case of emergency;
Students covered by private insurance must contact directly the insurance company with regard to the insurance policy’s conditions of use (e.g. how to obtain medical assistance; if medical expenses must be paid by the holder and claimed later; which medical expenses are covered, etc.)
The University of Padova or ULSS (Unità Locale Socio Sanitaria) do not provide any kind of information or assistance about private insurance.
The voluntary registration in the National Health Service entitles you to benefit from the Italian healthcare services like Italian citizens do, and it is valid for one calendar year (from 1st January to 31st December). The payment (€ 700,00) is not divisible and you cannot apply retroactively.
In order to register in the National Health Service, you can refer to the ULSS 6 Desk at Palazzo Bo’ (by appointment at this link) or at the nearest Social Health District (Distretto Socio Sanitario) of ULSS 6 Euganea:
Students residing in an EU Country and having the EHIC must verify that their EHIC is valid:
abroad (the European medical assistance section must be filled in with your personal data);
during the entire period of your stay in Italy.
The EHIC gives you access to the National Health Service for “urgently needed medical treatments” during temporary stay (e.g. free check-up at all GPs, access to all hospitals and agreed clinics, laboratory and instrumental-diagnostic tests) by paying a fee, commonly called “ticket”. The general aim is to ensure assistance while you are staying in Italy.
The EHIC guarantees free medical assistance for health issues occurred during your stay in Italy only; it does not cover the cost of private medical treatments. If the EHIC has a forthcoming expiry date, you should renew it before leaving your country of residence; if the document is not going to be ready on time, you can use a provisional replacement certificate.
The EHIC of another EU country does not entitle to waivers, with the exception of a list of therapies periodically updated by the European Commission, including kidney dialysis, oxygen therapy, treatment of asthma, echocardiography in case of autoimmune chronic diseases, chemotherapy etc. If you wish to benefit from the same waiver you are entitled to in the EU Country that issued the EHIC, you have to transfer your legal residence to Italy. Before doing that, you must collect the following documents issued by the health institution in your country of residence:
documentation certifying the pathology;
S1 form that entitles you to health care services on the same terms as Italian citizens, after the compulsory registration in the National Health Service, to be made at the nearest Social Health District (Distretto Socio Sanitario).
If you do not want to transfer your legal residence in Italy, you can have prescribed therapies and check-ups with "red prescription" by any GP thanks to the EHIC, but you cannot benefit from waivers (except from the previously mentioned cases) and you must pay for medical treatments.
If during your stay you need to undergo regular therapies, you must contact the hospital or clinic in Italy well in advance, in order to make sure that such therapies are available (for this purpose, a medical report must be provided).
Students from Countries Italy has an agreement with are entitled to comprehensive medical care provided by the Italian National Health Service, using the forms released by the healthcare institutions in your country of residence.
Here is the list of the Countries and the forms to request:
Argentina – mod. IRA1 (student who is a dependant of a pensioner)
Australia – Medicare ID card (valid only up to 6 months from your arrival in Italy)
Brazil – mod. l/B 2
Cape Verde – mod. 111 (student who is a dependant of a pensioner)
Croatia – mod.111
Bosnia and Herzegovina,Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro – mod. OBR 7
Monaco – mod. l/MC 8
Repubblic of San Marino – mod. l/SMAR 8
These forms must be submitted to the International Relations Office of ULSS 6 before requesting medical treatments. The International Relations Office of ULSS 6 will issue a form that must be shown to the GP or the hospital any time you need medical treatments. The form gives you access to the National Health Service for “urgently needed medical treatment” e.g. free check-up by all GPs, access to all hospitals and agreed clinics, laboratory and instrumental-diagnostic tests) by paying a fee, commonly called “ticket”. The general aim is to ensure assistance while you are staying in Italy. The form guarantees free medical assistance for health issues occurred during your stay in Italy only. It does not cover the cost of private medical treatments.
For scheduled treatments and elective care, it is necessary to be authorised by the competent institution in your country of residence, that will release the appropriate form.
Alternatively, it is possible to register voluntarily in the National Health Service, as described in the section “Voluntary registration in the National Health Service”.
Students who have a double citizenship including Italian can either transfer their residence in Italy in order to have access to the National Health Service, or have a private insurance cover.
For information on how to transfer your residence to Padova:
For further information please read the Guide to Health services released by the Veneto Region, which is available online in multiple languages: http://www.venetoimmigrazione.it/
If you need medical assistance and you have a EHIC, you can go for free to any General Practitioner (GP – in Italian "Medico di Medicina Generale" or "Medico di base") in any Social Health District (Distretto Socio Sanitario) of the ULSS n. 6. If you are registered in the Italian National Health Service (i.e. you have a "Tessera sanitaria"), you can go for free to the General Practitioner assigned. If you don't have the EHIC nor the "Tessera sanitaria" you will have to pay for the medical consultation (charges may vary depending on the doctor).
In case of severe emergency, you should go to the nearest Emergency Room (“Pronto Soccorso”)
At the arrival, a code is assigned based on the urgency of your condition:
Red code: very critical, danger of death, highest priority, immediate access to healthcare;
Yellow code: averagely critical, advanced risk, possible danger of death;
Green code: little critical, no risks of worsening, treatment can be delayed;
White code: not critical, not urgent.
To access the Emergency Room you should bring with you:
ID or passport;
EHIC or the form released by the Social Health District (for students from countries with which Italy has an agreement only), or a valid private medical insurance, or the medical ID ("Tessera sanitaria", if registered in the National Health Service only).
With a valid EHIC , you can go for free to any General Practitioner (GP, in Italian: "Medico di Medicina Generale" or "Medico di base"), available during weekly opening hours for general medical check-up next to your accommodation. On the other hand, if you are registered in the Italian National Health System (i.e. you have a "Tessera sanitaria"), you can go for free to the general practitioner assigned. If you don't have the EHIC nor the "Tessera sanitaria" you will have to pay for the medical consultation (charges may vary depending on the doctor).
A General Practitioner can release prescriptions for medicines and referral for specialist treatment, as well as medical certificates (e.g. for VISA).
without any compulsory prescription: it means that they can be used for transitional problems or minor injuries without a prior medical diagnosis, prescription or surveillance. They are available at pharmacies, parapharmacies and some supermarkets.
subject to medical prescription: it means that they must be prescribed by a doctor.
If you use any medication, please verify the availability of the same medication in Italy before your arrival and bring with you the doctor's prescription.
Usually pharmacies follow the opening hours of all other shops (weekdays, roughly from 9 AM to 7 PM). If you need to access a pharmacy in the evening or weekends, there are pharmacies available 24/7, including public holidays, based on a shift calendar:
In order to see a specialist, you will need a prescription from a GP, then you have to book an appointment at CUP - Centro Unico Prenotazioni:
District 1 – Via E. Degli Scrovegni, 12 – Padova – from Monday to Friday, from 7.30 AM to 12.30 PM and from 2 to 6.30 PM
Azienda Ospedaliera di Padova – Via Giustiniani, 2, at the top of “Pronto Soccorso”, from Monday to Friday, from 7.30 AM to 7 PM
When booking the appointment, please pay attention to the address where it will take place, as the appointment might be assigned to a hospital or clinic outside Padova.
Specialist consultations and diagnostic examinations in Italy are subject to a fee (commonly called “ticket”), unless being waiver beneficiary.
Vaccinations for travel or VISA application purposes are subject to a fee. You should refer to:
Servizio di Igiene e Sanità Pubblica (S.I.S.P.) Via Ospedale, 22 – Padova (PD) Tel. 049 8214239 Email: sisp.ulss16aulss6.veneto.it
For scheduled paediatric vaccinations, please refer to the Centro Vaccinazioni Pediatriche (Paediatric Vaccination Centre):
SS CF EE - Pediatria di Comunità Sede Centrale Vaccinazioni Via Boccaccio 80 - 35128 Padova (PD) Opening hours: Monday and Wednesday, from 2.30 to 5 PM; Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 12 to 1.30 PM Tel. 049 8217406 Email: vaccinazioni.d1.boccaccio@aulss6.veneto.it
