There are a number of private hospitals that operate independently of state health services in Ireland. If you opt for private care in a private hospital, you are liable for the full cost of your treatment and care.

Private and semi-private hospital care in Ireland is also provided in public and voluntary hospitals – these bodies must clearly distinguish between private and public beds and the relevant costs.

Using health insurance

Health insurance may be used to pay for private care and treatment in hospital, clinics or practices and provision varies between insurers, but most have agreements with hospitals that the company will pay the hospital directly. In some situations, you pay the health professional directly and then claim from the health insurance company – always check at the point of use and ensure you are covered for treatment.

Benefits of private health insurance include:

• Cover for private and semi private hospital accommodation
• Cover for in-hospital consultant services as a private patient
• Other cover including maternity, overseas, psychiatric and out-patient benefits

See Citizens Information for more detail on private health insurance

Cross-border issues

• The Northern Ireland Planned Healthcare Scheme (NIPHS) allows residents of Ireland to claim back some of the costs of specific healthcare treatment in Northern Ireland. This Scheme can only be used to access private healthcare and does not apply to public healthcare. Under the NIPHS Scheme, you pay for your treatment in NI and then apply to the HSE for repayment of some of the costs of your treatment. The Scheme is similar to the Cross Border Directive which enables you to access healthcare in another EU state and have costs reimbursed.
• If you’re already covered by private health insurance in Ireland, you should check your policy carefully to ensure you are fully covered before making plans for any treatment, care or admissions in Northern Ireland.

Frontier workers

• If you live in one jurisdiction and work in another you may be eligible for healthcare both where you live and where you work, for further information please visit BorderPeople Healthcare for Frontier workers.

See also:

• Citizens Information – Health
• Border People FAQs on healthcare
• Border People – Cross Border Healthcare Directive (EU) & Replacement Schemes

Page last checked March 2023

This webpage is for general information purposes only and while we endeavour to keep it up-to-date, errors may occur. It is very important that you check with the relevant body to ensure the information is current and is applicable to your situation.

If you would like to suggest amendments or highlight new information that could be useful to others please don’t hesitate to get in touch.