Plastic surgery on the National Health Fund? Few people know about it, and you won’t pay anything for these procedures. There is one catch.

are primarily associated with procedures that are intended to beautify or remove a defect that is the cause of complexes. They are not the cheapest, so it is no wonder that aesthetic tourism is flourishing. For plastic surgery, such as rhinoplasty, liposuction and implantation, we most often fly to Turkey, although the Czech Republic and Lithuania are also popular destinations. Meanwhile, surgeries and procedures are also performed in situations where it is difficult to talk about a whim.

What plastic surgery is reimbursed by the National Health Fund? Only under one condition

Some plastic surgery procedures qualify as guaranteed benefits and are therefore subject to reimbursement. There is one condition: they must concern the consequences of a congenital defect, injury, disease or its treatment. Contrary to appearances, this applies to a large number of procedures. What plastic surgery and procedures does it reimburse? These include:

• breast correction after mastectomy,
• mammoplasty, i.e. breast reduction in a situation where excessively large breasts cause health problems,
• reconstruction and correction of facial or body deformities after an accident or injury,
• removal of a congenital defect, such as a cleft lip, or one acquired during childbirth,
• removal of burn scars,
• removal of excess skin after significant weight loss,
• removing the effects of chronic diseases, e.g. chronic skin ulceration.

In many cases, the refund also includes rehabilitation after the procedure. A referral for a plastic surgery procedure, issued by a family doctor or specialist, is required. Full medical documentation will also be needed, and above all, proof of health insurance. However, the final decision is made by the National Health Fund after analysis and assessment of the reimbursement application, and often after additional consultations.

She had plastic surgery. She quickly regretted it She had plastic surgery. She quickly regretted it. Photo: unsplash.com / Piron Guillaume

What aesthetic medicine treatments are covered by the National Health Fund? Some of them you can do at no extra cost

Theoretically, the National Health Fund does not finance aesthetic medicine procedures. They do not serve to restore, preserve, save or improve health, and only such health services are reimbursed by the National Health Fund. In some situations However, it is possible to undergo publicly funded aesthetic medicine treatment. This applies, for example, to the removal of pigmented moles, the removal of non-cancerous skin tumors, or the correction of drooping eyelids.