The State System
Health care in Slovenia is chiefly run by the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia. It is bound by law to provide compulsory health insurance to all qualifying citizens. Its key task is to provide efficient collection and allocation of healthcare funds. The Institute consists of 10 regional units and 45 branches located all over Slovenia. Each qualifying citizen receives an electronic health insurance card, which they must produce each time they visit medical practitioners.

Employers must register their employees with the Health Insurance Institute when a new employee starts work. Employees and employers pay contributions into the healthcare fund. The combined contribution is 13.45 percent of which, 6.56 percent is paid by the employers and 6.36 percent is paid by the employees. Employers also pay an additional 0.53 percent to cover against occupational injuries and diseases. Dependant family members are covered by the contributions paid by employed family members. The self-employed must pay contributions according to a fixed proportion of their after-tax income. The unemployed, old age pensioners and people on long-term sickness benefit or maternity leave have to pay a fixed amount of healthcare contributions, for example pensioners pay a contribution of 5.65 percent of their gross pension towards the fund a year. Foreigners immigrating to Slovenia without jobs must produce proof of private health insurance in order to obtain their residence permit.

The state fund covers most medical services including treatment by specialists, hospitalisation, prescriptions, pregnancy and childbirth and rehabilitation.

Fees
Despite contributions to the health fund most doctors will ask for an extra fee for their services.