The following shall be ensured from the State budget in Latvia:

• healthcare provided by the family doctor and his team;
• prevention testing with a family doctor once a year (if the patient has not applied to a doctor in connection with the illness within a year);
• prevention tests for breast, uterine, intestinal and prostate cancer;
• healthcare provided by doctors - specialists;
• tests with referral of a family doctor or a specialist;
• medical assistance at emergency medical services;
• daily hospital health services;
• day-to-day health care;
• home health care;
• assistance provided by the emergency team;
• medical rehabilitation;
• reimbursable medicinal products and medical devices.

Family doctor the patient may be sent to any specialist who is in contractual relations with the National Health Service.

The family doctor listens the patient's complaints, assesses the patient's state of health and the need for services.

With deployment, the patient may receive State-paid medical specialist advice, diagnostic or laboratory examinations, medical rehabilitation, daily hospital services, state-paid healthcare services in elective ambulators.

When receiving state-paid health services, the patient must make the patient co-payment.

State paid medical advice and other medical services may be received by throughout Latvia.

If the same doctor's specialist should be revisited several times during one illness, there is no need for a repeat of the family doctor.

Multiple population are exempt from carrying out patient co-pays.

A family doctor's referral is not required when visiting direct access specialists:

• gynecologist;
• ophthalmologist;
• child surgeon;
• paediatrics;
• narcologist;
• a psychiatrist or child psychiatrist, if the patient is suffering from a mental illness;
• pneumonologist in case of tuberculosis;
• dermatovenerologist, if the patient is suffering from sexually transmisī diseases;
• endocrinologist in case of diabetes mellitus;
• oncologist treatment for treatment with oncological disease;
• infectologist if the patient is infected with a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or in people who have been in direct contact with an HIV infected person; or if a capillary blood or saliva expatriate at the HIV prophylaxis point has a positive effect on HIV/C hepatitis/B hepatitis;
• sports physician at the state limited liability company “Children's Clinical University Hospital”.

! Apply for public-paid professional advice may be made in healthcare establishments which have entered into a contract with the National Health Service.

State-paid dental services of 100% may be received:

• children under 18 years of age;
• children underpaid dental hygiene once a year, from 2 to 18 years of age. Twice a year, children may receive dental hygiene at the age of 7, 11 and 12;
• children under 18 pay white seals from state budget funds for only three first front teeth from the middle to each side (six teeth for the upper jaw and six teeth for the lower jaw). From the fourth tooth, only silver seals shall be paid;
• first-time orthodontic counselling is paid to patients with congenital facial jaw jaw-twists aged up to 22 years and also to children under 18 years of age;
• Participants in the elimination of the consequences of the accident of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and persons affected by the accident of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in persons specified in Section 14 of the Law on Social Protection - expenses for the replacement of teeth with removable plastic prostheses;
• asylum seekers in acute cases;
• patients with Disability Group I identified due to mental and behavioural disorders - only acute dental extraction in general anaesthetics.

State-paid dental services of 50% shall be received:

• Participants in the elimination of the consequences of the accident of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the persons injured in the accident of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the persons specified in Section 14 of the Law on Social Protection - expenses for dental services.

Information on waiting lines for receiving State-paid dental services is available on the website rindapiearsta.lv.

In children under 18 years of age (not including) on Saturdays, State paid dental services are available in acute (sudden and urgent) cases :

• acute, persistent toothache;
• swelling of the cheek or/and gums
• tooth trauma.

State paid dental services shall be provided dentists and medical treatment institutions which has an agreement with the National Health Service.

On site www.rindapiearsta.lvyou can find out which medical treatment institutions provide state-paid healthcare services and where they can be received more quickly.

Waiting times vary from one treatment institution to another. If the receipt of a State-paid health care service in one medical treatment institution has to wait in line, the patient has the right to apply to another medical treatment institution in which the waiting lines are not or are less.

Information on the length of waiting lines shall be compiled by medical treatment institutions once a month, so that the accounts of the waiting lines are informative.

The most up-to-date information on line lengths can be found by contacting the particular medical treatment institution.

In cases of injuries, such as burns, fractures, dispositions or sudden diseases, medical treatment is provided by at emergency medical treatment points.

In natural cases where health or life are at risk, assistance shall be provided to the hospital reception departments. If it is planned to travel to the hospital accommodation department with your car, it is recommended that you contact the hospital for assistance in accordance with the patient's health status before going (if possible). For example, there are hospital reception departments that can be targeted if a bone fracture is suspected, while others may be targeted in case of body burns.

It should be noted that hospital reception departments do not provide State-paid medical assistance in non-emergency cases requiring the receipt of scheduled services.

There is no need for a family doctor to receive the service.

In a life-critical case, call the Emergency Medical Service 113.

The 113 phone operator must be contacted if:

• the person is unconscious;
• is a life-threatening bleeding;
• serious injury (road accident, electrical injury, fire, etc.);
• is a sudden chest pain that may indicate a infarction;
• there is a sudden weakness on one side that can indicate a stroke;
• in any other situation where minutes are crucial to the receipt of the assistance.

Patient co-payment is a payment that a patient makes on receiving state-paid health services. The largest part of the service costs is covered by State budget resources. The patient co-payment must be accompanied by a proof of payment document, a check or a hard-keeping receipt.

The amount of the patient co-payment varies depending on the service provided.

Payment Procedures for Receiving State-paid Health Care Services shall be determined by Cabinet Regulation No. 555 - Procedures for Organising and Payment of Health Services.

State compensates drugs and medical devices that are included national list of countervailable medicinal products, 100%, 75% and 50%, depending on the patient's diagnosis and compensation conditions.

For children under 18 years, medicines from the list of countervailable medicinal products are paid at 100% (the cheapest equivalent medicinal product).

! In order to determine whether there is a possibility of receiving a national reimbursable medicinal product or medical device in the case of a given diagnosis, the patient must consult his or her treating physician.

! It isM List which includes medicines, can be prescribed by a doctor regardless of the patient's diagnosis. The country compensates for the following medicinal products:

• 50% for children under 24 months of age;
• for pregnant women and women up to 70 postnatal days, 25%.

The country compensates the cheapest of medicines with the same effect intended to treat a particular disease because they have the same active substance. The exactly active substance is what treats the disease. If more expensive medicines are selected for the patient, the difference between the cheapest and more expensive medicines should be borne by him. Even in the case of 100% compensation, the patient should pay a premium if one of the more expensive medicines of the same effect is selected. It is therefore important to discuss with your doctor and pharmacist the possibility of using the cheapest medicines of the same effect in order not to overpay.

Medical treatment institutions and doctors working there providing State-paid healthcare services 

Information on doctors entitled to discharge State reimbursable medicinal products

Information about family doctors

Information about doctors - specialists

Compensation procedures for reimbursable medicinal products

Medicinal products and medical devices included in the national list of reimbursable medicinal products

National eHealth Portal

The Ministry of Health (HM)

The National Health Service (NHS)

The Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (CDPC)

The Health Inspectorate (HI)

The State Agency of Medicines (SAM)

Sick leave and action in the event of illness

Health information for me or children

Workplace health