Health system
Poland’s medical facilities are of an equivalent standard to those in other EU countries. Private medical facilities are comparatively inexpensive and of a good standard.
EU nationals can gain access to emergency medical treatment in Poland free of charge being holder of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). The EHIC will not cover you for medical repatriation, on-going medical treatment or treatment of a non-urgent nature, therefore you are advised to check if your travel insurance covers you for such conditions.
Every EU or EFTA Member State citizen who is subject to health insurance in Poland must obtain his/her PESEL number as all Polish citizens. The PESEL (Universal Electronic System for Registration of the Population) number is an 11-digit symbol which identifies a natural person. The number consists of the following components: the date of birth, an ordinal number, a number denoting sex and a check digit. If applicable provisions of law require a person to have the PESEL number, it is assigned ex officio upon registration of residence or at a justified request submitted to the competent communal or city office (respectively urząd gminy or urząd miasta).
Obligatory health insurance applies to inter alia employees, persons who perform work under an agency contract, a commission contract or any other service provision contract, persons who conduct business activities, excluding those who have suspended their business activities, persons who receive pensions, pupils, students and PhD students, unemployed persons, persons receiving certain types of social benefits or certain family benefits. A person who resides in Poland can take out voluntary insurance by signing a voluntary health insurance agreement with the Provincial NFZ branch of his/her place of residence in Poland.
For further information, check the National Health Services website.