The structure of Denmark’s healthcare system

The healthcare of Denmark operates across three levels: the state, the regions and the municipalities.

The state is responsible for the overall regulatory and supervisory functions.

Denmark has five regions. Their role is to check the operation of hospital care, such as emergency care, psychiatry, and healthcare services provided by general practitioners and specialists in private healthcare.

The 98 municipalities of Denmark are responsible for several health and social services. What’s more, they co-finance rehabilitation services and training facilities in the region.

The Danish welfare system gives equal rights to all citizens when it comes to social security. Most of the services provided in healthcare are financed by taxes and free of charge in most cases.

The Danish Patient Safety Authority is the liaison body for healthcare. It provides general guidance about the Danish healthcare system.

All the Danish regions have a patient office. The advisors there have the knowledge of healthcare services in Denmark. In addition, they can give you an advice what treatment to choose.

Medical treatment

If you become ill during your stay in Denmark, for example on a holiday, you might be charged for treatment. However, you do not need to pay if you meet one of the criteria below:

You have public health insurance in another EU country/Norway/Iceland/Liechtenstein/Switzerland – and can show a valid European Health Insurance Card or a Provisional Replacement Certificate for the card
You live and have health insurance in one of the Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Finland or Iceland)
You reside in the Faroe Islands or Greenland
You can prove that you are under 18 at the time of treatment

You are entitled to treatment in the Danish public healthcare system on the same terms and conditions as Danish citizens.

When it comes to the treatment, the treating doctor or the healthcare professional will be the one who gives you the relevant information on the treatment and will advise what is necessary.

Please be aware that the European Healthcare Card does not cover all medical treatments. The card doesn’t cover:

Treatment by private healthcare professionals or private hospitals
Expenses for return journey to your home country – either where it is ordered by a doctor or in the event of death
Planned treatment i.e. if you travel to Denmark for the purpose of being treated.

However, you may arrange a planned treatment in Denmark under different set of rules.

Health insurance

A comprehensive public healthcare system in Denmark provides free consultations and care at neighbourhood doctors’ offices, emergency rooms, and public hospitals.

The Danish health insurance system covers anyone who is employed legally in Denmark. Even though most exams and treatments are free, you must register and obtain a health insurance card.

Until children turn 15 and become insured independently from their parents, they are enrolled in the health insurance program with their mother or father.

To register with a general practitioner (GP) and obtain a yellow health insurance card, you must be covered by the national health insurance.

The health insurance card serves as proof of your eligibility for the benefits provided by the national health insurance program.

Your national health insurance card will be delivered to your Danish address about three to four weeks after you register. Your name and address, your CPR number, and the name and location of your doctor will all be listed on the card.

It is advisable to always keep this card on you because you must present it whenever you visit a doctor, dentist, or hospital, as well as when you want to check out books from the library.

Entering Denmark from another country

Residences serve as the basis for the Danish public health insurance system. You are eligible for all public healthcare benefits if you reside in Denmark and are registered with the Danish Civil Registration System.

You must provide information about your current health insurance country

If you are older than 18 and moved to Denmark, you must provide information about your country of health insurance, whether you:

are a citizen of an EU country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland
have lived resided in an EU country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland immediately before coming to Denmark.

Udbetaling Danmark will use the information to determine which nation will cover the cost of your use of the Danish healthcare system. Payment may occasionally need to be made by a nation other than Denmark in accordance with EU regulations. This nation is referred to as your health insurance nation.

Even in the absence of information or documentation, you must provide information about your health insurance country.

What happens after you provided the necessary information?

Udbetaling Danmark will determine whether you are covered by the Danish health insurance or the health insurance in another country after you have submitted the necessary information.

Your country of health insurance will pay the costs for the public healthcare services you receive in Denmark.

Based on the data and supporting documentation you provide, Udbetaling Danmark will determine your country of health insurance. Udbetaling Danmark will get in touch with you if more information is required.