Hey guys! You might be wondering and calculating the costs of living in Sweden. I assure you that healthcare is not as expensive as you may perceive it and let me explain how healthcare works here!
Finding your way around the Swedish healthcare system
The Swedish healthcare system is financed by social insurance that provides all citizens with subsidised healthcare through the government. If you have a European Insurance card (EHIC), thumbs up! You are all covered equally as a Swede! If you as a non-EU student get a Swedish personal identification number, you too will be covered and get access to health care like a Swede.
Swedish personal identification number
Getting your Swedish personal identification number personal makes things go much smoother in Sweden. Swedes love queuing, so with a personal number, you might fasten things up. For instance, when calling the emergency number (112), stating your personal number will connect things, and you probably receive the help quicker.
1177
By the way, by saying Swedes love queueing, I mean it. When you call 1177, the number for online healthcare services, you hear the auto-reply saying: your place in the queue is… forty-seven… Nevertheless, this number is free and is open 24/7. Feel free to call them anytime you have a health problem and a qualified nurse will try her best to help you out!
Vårdscentralen- what is that? step 3
The odds are that you might need to visit a healthcare centre occasionally. Hopefully not! In case you do, ‘Vårdscentralen’ is what the healthcare centre is called in Sweden. Find the closest one to the place that you are staying and drop in or call them to register yourself!
Healthcare prices-easily beatable
To calm you down, most health and medical care in Sweden is publicly financed, so it is not super expensive. You may pay 100-300 KR per visit to see a doctor. If you need a specific doctor, it might be more expensive, but in the long run, you won’t pay more than 1200kr per year. In short, you can find all the specialists you need, when you reach the limit (1200kr), and above that, the healthcare is free! To clarify even more, you can see the table below.
| Fees in healthcare | primary care | specialist care |
| Fee per visit (outpatient) | SEK 100–300 | SEK 200-400* |
| Maximum fee 12 months period (outpatient) | SEK 1,200 | 1,200 |
| Maximum fee per day (inpatient) | SEK 100 | SEK 100 |
Pharmacies
Pharmacies – “apotek” can be found everywhere around Stockholm. It is easy to pop up and get all the prescribed and non-prescription medicine. They have vaccination points as well. A great tip that I use is to order my shower products and vitamins online, and the delivery is free! It is an amazing feeling to wake up and find your shampoo by the door before 7 am for your refreshing morning shower!
No vaccinations
Sweden is a very free country regarding what is mandatory for your health. You decide what is best for you. To enter Sweden, you don’t need to be vaccinated. Good, right? Well, it weighs on your shoulders…
Dental care
Before coming to Sweden, I would pre-do dental care because here is quite pricy to get it done. Luckily, if you have your European Insurance card, dental care is free for young people until the year they turn 23! If you manage to get your personal number in time, you could perhaps check your teeth for free!
Help from KTH
If you feel down and have some problems either in your life or in your family, you can always reach out to KTH student health. As a student, you have an opportunity to contact them if you have health-related issues. Feel free to talk to them; I am sure they will find a solution. Talking about it is the first big step!
Check my previous post about what to prepare for before coming to Sweden for students from the EU! If you are wondering whether Stockholm is the best choice, have a look at Lorenzo’s post about why Stockholm is the best student city!
//Martyna