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Israel’s Public Hospitals & Medical Centers

Hebrew: בתי חולים פרטיים וציבוריים בישראל

Hopefully you will never need to be admitted to hospital.  But if you do, there is a choice of being hospitalized in government-run or private hospitals or medical facilities.  The Health Funds work in conjunction with the government hospitals and also with some private medical facilities. Some treatments and services are only offered at hospitals on an outpatient basis.

Tofes 17 – The Hitchayvut

Should you need to go to a public hospital for any reason, you will be required to present a “participation of payment authorization” (hitchayvut) from your the health fund.  The “hitchayvut” is also referred to as “Tofes 17” – Form 17 (translation here). The payment authorization is only provided upon the presentation of a doctor’s referral.  If you are taken to the emergency room, and depending on the circumstances, you may have to provide a authorization (hitchayvut) to the hospital within a certain time after you have been discharged, as specified by them.

• Navigate Israel’s medical & healthcare system with these resources

Maternity Hospitals

You can choose to deliver a baby at any of the government run hospitals in Israel that operate a maternity ward.  For convenience most women choose a hospital within their geographical area.  Should you be in another city for some reason, you will not be turned away from any hospital. Generally your own OB/GYN will not be present at the birth.  Midwives will assist you through your labor and a normal delivery.  Any emergency intervention will be treated by the team of doctors on duty and midwives.  The midwives are very experienced and you can trust them. It is comforting though if your gynecologist is affiliated to the hospital at which you are giving birth. He may even be on duty when you deliver and he can always check in on you after the birth.

• Family heath care clinics – Tipat Halav

List of Hospitals in Israel & Telephone Numbers

Private Healthcare Centers & Hospitals

Private hospitals offer all the services of a government run hospital.  The lines and waiting times are shorter and the care is much more personalized.  Some private healthcare centers offer only specific treatments and the health funds sometimes use these facilities for tests and treatments. You may be able to speed up an operation or treatment if you go to a private hospital or medical center.

Family Health Clinics – Tipat Halav

The Family Health Clinics (Tipat Halav) run by the Ministry of Health, are responsible for pre-natal and post-natal services to mothers and infants regardless of the health fund you belong to.  During your pregnancy, amongst other things, the community nurses will check your weight and take your blood pressure. They administer inoculations to your child at the appropriate intervals and check on their general well-being.  They weigh, measure, give nutritional advice for infants, check development and give breast feeding advice.  They also provide a list of doulas that you can contact, should you want to make use of one during a birth.

Poison Information Hotline

The Israel Poison Information Center at Rambam Hospital in Haifa
04-7771900 (24/7)

• Emergency services & telephone numbers

The Israel Ministry of Health

The Israeli Ministry of Health (Misrad Habriut):  website – www.health.gov.il  Tel: 02- 670 5705

Ombudsman (for public complaints, health fund issues as well as the basket of health services): Tel: 02-568 1234

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How do I fill a prescription for my meds in Israel?

The Health Basket (Sal Briut)

Israel’s health-basket (Heb: sal briut) offers a large selection of medication for all types of illnesses and ailments. However, not all the drugs you are familiar with, from your country of origin, are available here or are included in the health basket.

Make sure that details of all your required medications are included in the doctor’s report you bring with you when you relocate to Israel.

There is a large selection of imported medications available here, however if the medication you require is not available or is not in the health basket, your doctor may be able offer you one that is locally manufactured or a generic equivalent.

Health Fund Participation

You will not pay the full price for medication if it is covered by the “Sal Briut”.  You are responsible for a percentage and the Health Fund covers the rest.  Check on health-fund participation fees before you become a member of the fund.  You may be required to pay as little as 10 per cent of the cost of the medicine or as much as 90 per cent.

• Navigate Israel’s medical & healthcare system with these medical resources
• Hebrew English medical terminology with transliterations

Your prescription

You can have your prescription filled at the pharmacy.  Check that your local pharmacy works with your Health Fund.  You can also have your prescriptions filled at the Health Funds’ own pharmacy. These are usually located at the main branch of your health fund in your city.  These pharmacies may also discount their prices a little on over-the-counter – OTC – pharma items)

At your doctor’s appointment, you will be given a copy of your prescription.  (Clalit and Maccabi no longer issue paper prescriptions – they are accessible online). The prescription will include the brand name, generic name and dosage instructions.  The doctor’s license number, signature and stamp validates the prescription.  There is usually an expiry date on the prescription and the prescription cannot be filled after this time unless your doctor requests and approves an extension.

If you have a chronic condition, your specialist will give you 3 prescriptions one for each of the following three months.  When the 3 months are up you can ask your family doctor to issue a repeat  prescription.

If you are seeing a specialist privately (not via Kupat Holim), he will prepare a report including the recommended medication.  If the medication is included in the Sal Briut, you must take the report to your family doctor and he will issue the prescription.  If the medication is not in the Sal Briut, you are responsible for the full cost of the meds.

OTC’s – over the counter medications/non-prescription medications are available at pharmacies. Some supermarkets may keep basic first aid medication and supplies.

Remember – Safety First!

• Always read the package insert, the literature is mostly provided in English, Hebrew, Arabic, Russian and Amharic.
• Consult your doctor or pharmacists if you have any doubts regarding your medication.
• Please keep medications out of the reach of children
• Do not share your medication with anyone else.
• Don’t keep any unnecessary medication in the house, and destroy any medication that has passed its expiry date
• Many medications look the same so wear your glasses and make sure you are taking the right tablet

Tips for Olim

• When you relocating or coming on Aliyah, bring a 3-6 month supply of your prescription medication with you. This gives you enough time to find a new doctor.
• If you have a prescription from abroad, your new physician in Israel will prescribe a local equivalent.
• First prescriptions will not be issued without a physical examination.
• Keep a note of all your prescription medications, trade and generic names as well as the dosage, in your smartphone. This way, you are able to give this important information to any medical professional who may need it, at any time. This is especially useful in the initial stages of your aliyah and relocation when you may be going from doctor to doctor and are not yet familiar with local brand names.

At the pharmacy

When paying for your medication at the pharmacy, you will be required to present your Health Fund membership card.

Check the dosage instructions with the pharmacist and that the dosage is clearly marked on the package.  The dispensing of medications and labeling of instructions in Israel, are not the same as in other countries.

Making a doctor’s appointment & paying the fee in Israel.

Hebrew: תורים לרופאים

Here is how it works!

Residents – once you have chosen and joined a health fund you are entitled to medical assistance.  You should choose your general family physician (GP)  from the list of doctors provided by the Fund.  You can choose a GP on the basis of recommendation, location, hours, languages spoken etc. Appointments can be made by telephone or online via the Health Fund’s website.  Most doctors require that you make an appointment ahead of time, but some will say “just come”. An appointment with a GP is generally 10 minutes long.  As it is generally impossible to keep to such a timetable, be prepared to be kept waiting.

Your appointment

Not all doctors clinics are well organized, some have administrative staff, some do not.  If there is an assistant he/she will manage the doctor’s diary and call you in for your appointment.  If there is no assistant, things become a bit more complicated.  Be prepared for anything.  In some clinics you will be allocated a number and then you will have to patiently wait your turn. Sometimes, a patient will walk into the waiting room and ask “who is last?” (Heb: mi acharon?) – the last person will identify himself and all is well – everyone takes their turn in a calm and well organized manner. You may also be asked “what time is your appointment?” (Heb: le ayze shaa ata moozman?). Be careful, sometimes you can get into a heated discussion with someone who came after you, but insists his appointment is before yours.  In some cases, a list of appointments and times is displayed in the waiting room and that should settle that argument.

Be prepared to negotiate the situation and try not to get too upset by this behavior.  Like it or not, that is just the way it is in Israel.

• Hebrew English Translations of the Automated Answering Machines at the health funds
• Medical terminology with Hebrew, English and transliterations
• Get the most out of Israel’s medical & healthcare system

The doctor’s fee

When you finally get to see the doctor, he will ask you for your Health Fund membership card.  You are required to pay a nominal fee for the doctor’s visit.  You are only required to pay this fee quarterly irrespective of the number of appointments you have had with this doctor during the quarter.  Should you wish to change doctor in the middle of the quarter, you may have to pay a fee for that privilege.  Check with your Health Fund and verify their rules and regulations.

Visits to specialist physicians cost more.  There is also a participation fee for out-patient services, home visits, other therapies and treatments.  Check out the costs for the type of treatment you require (for a chronic condition) before becoming a member of a particular Health Fund.

It is most convenient, when you join your Health Fund, to arrange that the fee for any doctors visits automatically be deducted from your bank account together with your membership fees.  You will receive a statement of account with all doctors visits clearly itemized.

Private doctors

You have the choice to go privately if you can afford it.  For instance, the Health Fund may only pay for a specified number of visits to the gynecologist while you are pregnant – if you want additional care you can go privately. Some doctors, also affiliated to the Health Funds, have private practices.  Some doctors are not affiliated to any Health Fund and therefore any visit is on a private basis only.

Private visits are expensive but are sometimes necessary. The Health Fund has rules regarding private doctors too.  You may be eligible to receive a reimbursement for part of the cost of the private visit.  You are not entitled to the Health Fund discount on medications prescribed by a private doctor.  It is sometimes possible to ask your Health Fund GP to give you a prescription for the medication stipulated by the private physician.

When dealing with private doctors you may be able to hasten treatments and surgeries that otherwise might take a long time via the Health Fund.

Generally speaking, there is a wide enough choice of doctors and specialists in each Health Fund. There are many Anglo doctors and most Israeli doctors speak English.  Happily, we have the privilege of being able to obtain good care from the national health and we can go privately if we so choose.

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Health-care options for non-residents of Israel

Hebrew: ביטוח רפואי וניתוחים פרטיים לאזרחים זרים בישראל

Israel has an outstanding healthcare system and during the coronavirus, that has been proven.  Israel forged ahead, and lead the way, with it’s vaccination campaign, keeping schools and the economy open.

Generally medical and healthcare is affordable.  Supplementary healthcare is available as an add-on to the basic healthcare package.

There is separate legislation for non-residents of the country, living in Israel – tourists, diplomats, students, businesspersons, and other foreign nationals or individuals who have do not (yet) have residency status.

Maccabi Health-care Services and Clalit Health Services offer insurance for non-residents together with a wide range of facilities and services; primary physicians, pediatricians, specialists, laboratory tests and clinics, imaging, referral to hospital emergency rooms and hospitalization, and medications included in the national health care basket.

Non-residents can also purchase health-care insurance from the many private insurance companies in Israel like Clal, Harel, AIG etc. via an insurance agent or online via the insuring company’s website.

• For more tips and suggestions click through to our  A – Z Living Guide for Foreigners in Israel
• Get the best out of Israel medical & healthcare system

Calling the Israel Ambulance service and your entitlements.

Hebrew: הזמנת אמבולנס

Emergency Telephone Number – 101

First step to calling an ambulance in Israel

Make sure that the emergency services telephone numbers are prominently positioned around your home.   Dialing 101 from any phone in Israel connects you with MADA – Magen David Adom – the emergency medical response unit.  The ambulance and paramedics will come to your aid, and give you the best care possible and transport you to a hospital if necessary.

Under the provisions of the National Health Insurance Law, a health-fund member (insurant) is eligible to receive partial or total participation in ambulance evacuation fees in the following cases as outlined by the Ministry of Health:

• Anyone covered by national health insurance who is evacuated to a hospital by Magen David Adom (MADA) and is subsequently hospitalized is automatically entitled to full funding of ambulance evacuation costs
• Anyone covered by national health insurance who is evacuated by MADA in a mobile intensive care unit (“NATAN”) and is not subsequently hospitalized is entitled to partial funding of the evacuation costs
• One who is evacuated by a regular ambulance (not an intensive care unit) and not hospitalized must pay for the evacuation except in certain cases.  For specifics and more information, see the “Kol HaBriut website and the Ministry of Health’s English website

An insurant that was taken by an ambulance should approach a health fund clinic as soon as possible and present the ambulance report and bill. This, in order to settle the payment through the Health Fund, according to the above-mentioned regulations.

It is also recommended to make inquiries as to whether any other eligibility exists, beyond the regulations that are specified above and within the framework of the Fund or of the Fund’s supplementary insurance.

An insurant who doesn’t settle payment through the Health Fund within 60 days of receiving ambulance services, is obliged to pay the entire sum to the ambulance company. Thereafter, he may contact the Health Fund and ask for a partial or total reimbursement, in accordance with the regulations.

Calling your Health Fund can be a headache so we’ve translated their automated answering machines from Hebrew to English

• Kupat Holim Leumit 
• Kupat Holim Meuhedet 
• Kupat Holim Maccabi
• Kupat Holim Clalit

Private Ambulance Services

Private ambulances are available countrywide, for your medical transport requirements if you are not covered by the Health Funds.

In any case of doubt, you may approach the Ministry of Health’s complaints commissioner.

Contact Tel: 02-5681257, Fax: 02-5655981 – 29 Rivka St., Jerusalem

Health Tips

1. Hospital bills not covered by the Health Funds, are payable within 14 days.  Ambulance bills are payable within 30 days.
2. Have regular family drills!  Explain and show young children how to call an ambulance or any emergency service.

• How to call the emergency services with Hebrew, English and transliterations

Some rules are just ridiculous!

Myra, one of our readers wrote in..

After an unfortunate medical emergency, I took my hospital discharge and ambulance bills to my health-fund for settlement.  In spite of the law, I was surprised when I was told that I had to pay 50% of the ambulance bill.  I was told by the health-fund representative that the only way to ensure that I was fully covered for an ambulance and an hospital stay (which was not the result of a doctors referral), is to call the health-fund’s emergency number, ask for the nurses station, and explain the nature of the health problem to them.  They will then authorize and arrange an ambulance if necessary (and payment) as well as any hospitalization or emergency-room treatment, if required. In my case it was not possible to call the Health Fund for pre-approval as I was unconscious.  My young children did a fine job calling the ambulance and did their best to cope with this emergency on their own – they would never have been able to call the health fund for pre-approval.

• A comprehensive list of emergency contact numbers in Israel
• Tools for navigating Israel’s medical and health care system