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Health and Medical Information for Spain
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At its best, the health and medical care provided in Spain equals any available in Europe and in many cases is better.
However standards vary across the country with public medicine being scant in many of the inland areas of low population. This is a point to consider when looking for somewhere to live if you or your children or elderly relatives have ongoing medical conditions that might need emergency treatment.
Another point to consider is that Spain takes a different view to rehabillitation, convalescence and terminal illness, leaving care in these cases usually to the relatives. There are very few public nursing and retirement homes, very few hospices and convalescence homes.
However, the Spanish are among the world's healthiest people and have an average life expectancy of 80 for women and 74 for men, the highest in the EU. The incidence of heart disease in Spain is among the lowest in the world, a fact attributed to the Spanish Mediterranean diet.
As with the UK, Spain has a public (national) health system which provides free or low cost health care for those contributing to Spanish social security systems and their dependants. The system also caters for pensioners and includes those from other EU countries. The country has an excellent system of private medicine and this exists easily alongside the State system with both operated so as to compliment each other. There are many English-speaking health practitioners in the more densely populated and tourist areas.
If suddenly taken ill or involved in an accident during a visit to Spain, free or reduced-cost necessary treatment is available for European travellers - in most cases on production of a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) obtained in their country of origin. Comprehensive insurance is advised for all other nationals
