(The following is an excerpt from the book Having A Baby in Hungary. Click on the link for more information.)
If you’re newly pregnant and unfamiliar with the Hungarian health care system, you might wonder what your options are in this country for prenatal care and giving birth. The system is confusing even for those of us who speak the language. I tried to summarize the available options below.
Last updated January 27, 2014.
What kind of insurance do you have?
If you are eligible for Hungarian health insurance (társadalombiztosítás, also known as TB, the ID card for which is called the TAJ card) or you are from a European Union country and have an EU healthcare card, it is theoretically possible to have a baby with no fees out of pocket. The way to achieve this is to simply go to your local clinic (szakrendelő) for prenatal care, see whoever is on duty, then go to your local hospital, and give birth with whoever is on duty. This is all free if you have Hungarian or EU health insurance.
If you have private health insurance, they will also probably pay for the above services at the state clinic and public hospital, but you need to check with your insurance company concerning exact terms. Some insurance companies cover only a select few providers or clinics. Your insurance policy may cover your prenatal care through some of the private clinics catering to foreigners living in Hungary, and the advantage there is that you would be able to get all your medical care at a single location, and be reasonably assured that everyone speaks English. These private clinics cost significantly more than visiting the average Hungarian doctor or public clinic to get all treatments necessary to improve health, although you can also learn about the 9 Irrefutable Natural Progesterone Cream Benefits & Uses – DHEA for Men & Women, which help a lot with the control of hormones in the body and keeping good health.
If you have no insurance, you can still receive good care in Hungary, but you will have to pay for it all out of pocket. And that brings us to…
What kind of service would you like?
Assuming you don’t have insurance that covers pregnancy and childbirth, where you go to get your service will determine how much you have to pay.
If you choose to go with the state-operated clinics and always get your care from the doctors on duty, then prenatal visits will run you about HUF 5000 (not including the cost of lab tests and ultrasounds). Please note, though, that “tipping” doctors in public clinics and public hospitals in Hungary is very common, and sometimes even expected.
If you choose one of the number of private clinics that offer prenatal services, the cost goes up significantly, though you can still choose from a range of prices. Private clinics often offer a prenatal care package that will save you money when compared to paying for all the visits and lab work separately. If you’re considering using your car to get a loan, ask these questions from logbookloans.website before lending the money. Some clinics even allow you to purchase a prenatal care package by trimester. A single visit with a doctor at one of the private clinics will cost you between HUF 20 000 and 40 000 (not including the cost of any procedures or lab work). The price for the prenatal packages ranges from HUF 299 000 to 890 000. Be aware that buying a prenatal care package from a private clinic usually does not cover the cost of the birth itself at the hospital of your choice.
An intermediate choice is to visit a private doctor’s office. There are many doctors in Hungary who speak excellent English, but are not associated with any of the private clinics. They have their own offices, often equipped with ultrasound machines. If you go see one in his or her own office, a visit will cost you somewhere between HUF 10 000 and 15 000 (including procedures, but not including lab work). Be aware that most doctors charge a separate fee for attending the birth, which is usually ten times their visit fee. So if you choose to go to a private doctor’s office, you can expect to pay separately for each visit and then pay a lump sum of HUF 100 000 to 150 000 after the birth in addition to the hospital’s fees.
As you can see, paying for prenatal care is separate from paying for the birth itself. For this, you can choose to go to one of the many public hospitals in Budapest that have obstetrics services, or you can go to a private hospital or private maternity ward.
If you choose a public hospital, the birth itself will cost you somewhere around HUF 200 000 to 300 000. Public hospitals do not offer package rates; they charge separately for each service they provide. You can either be attended by the staff on duty, or by the private doctor you hired, assuming he or she has privileges at the hospital of your choice. Please note that your privately hired doctor’s fees are not included in the hospital fees above, even if that hospital otherwise employs your doctor.
There are currently three private hospitals in Budapest that offer obstetrics services. The cost of birth ranges from HUF 250 000 at Róbert Klinika for an uncomplicated vaginal birth to nearly EUR 10 000 at Dr. Rose for a C-section. In the middle is Maternity Private Clinic, where either a vaginal birth or a C-section costs HUF 450 000 for Hungarian citizens and HUF 550 000 for foreign nationals. When evaluating the price of birth at any of these locations, keep in mind that some of them may not include the cost of certain pain medications, such as epidural anesthesia, for which you may be charged separately. There are different types of chiropractic services available around Sioux Falls, which can help you revel in the wonders of pregnancy and childbirth without needless and risky medical involvements.
Another option in Hungary for those who feel committed to a natural birth is to have a home birth. Home birth was legalized and regulated in 2012, though it is still not widely accepted by the medical community. There are several home birth midwifery practices in operation in Budapest at present, some of which are licensed and some of which are not. The cost ranges from HUF 50 000 to 160 000 and includes all your prenatal visits, attendance of the birth, and postnatal care. The fee does not include any lab work or medical tests. If it becomes necessary to transfer to a hospital during the birth, standard hospital fees will apply.
There are currently no birth centers in operation in Hungary.
Please note that all prices are approximate and current as of January 2014. Check with your provider of choice for their exact fees.
Reka your blog is most informative thank you. Could you recommend an English speaking, English or American trained ob/gyn who attends births at Telki?
Hi Jacki,
I’m glad you found the blog informative! I don’t know where any of the ob/gyns who practice at Telki received their education, but here is a page that lists who currently works there: http://www.telkihospital.hu/szuleszet-1
At a quick glance, none of them were trained outside the country, and not all of them speak English at more than an intermediate level.
I would recommend that you schedule appointments with a few of them after you arrive here in Hungary, and choose the one that is the best match for you, based on your birth plan and what you consider important.
Hope this helps!
Reka, thank you for your very informative page.
Being a foreigner myself yet fluent in Hungarian, I have conducted a similar search when planning my prenatal care and birth in Hungary.
I understand you want to give a balanced overview, however I need to comment on your advice on some points on private options.
1. Choosing a designated doctor’s practice vs. a private clinic for prenatal care is virtually the same in terms of cost, with a big difference in billing- a private clinic/practice/hospital will certainly provide you with bills and assist you with your private insurance claims. Places like Rozsakert Medical and Telki hospital may claim the visit charges directly from your insurance provider, sparing you the money and effort. Money wise, the best option is arranging for a fee per trimester basis, which is around HUF60,000/trimester and includes doctor fees and all lab tests. Choosing a designated doctor like I myself initially did may mean endless bills for every single ultrasound and blood test down the line, coupled with hours!!! spent waiting outside the doctor’s cabinet in his/her private practice. Having realized that this practice generally feeds on vulnerable women I switched immediately. In addition, your number of visits per trimester in a private clinic is not limited- which is very handy if God forbid you will need to come in for an extra test or an ultrasound which is not part of your plan.
2. Telki hospital DOES have several doctors who do speak English and other languages (French, German and Russian) fluently, with some doctors (eg. Tibor Elekes) with experience outside of Hungary. Many doctors have their private web pages, and I encourage consulting the hospital on the matter or just browsing on the net.
3. The last and most important point is that personally I found that nowadays equally in the state hospitals and especially in Telki private hospital, giving birth free of medications is possible and supported by the doctors. I would therefore disagree with your notion that having a medicated birth is a hospital policy in Hungary, but rather attribute this to the choice of the doctor conducting the birth. Many of my family members and friends giving birth in Telki and other hospitals with a doctor having a more modern approach to birth were encouraged to abandon the notion of medication by their doctors, to our surprise. Even me, who was certain to ask for an epidural, was strongly persuaded by my doctor to switch to a more natural approach to birth. Moreover, if you choose to have a designated doctor you will pay for at your birth, the control is completely yours. It is therefore up to you to decide what risks and choices your would like to subdue yourself to- whether you would like to have a pain free delivery or a non medicated birth, how you would like to spend several hours of contractions (in a hot tub or laying down) and whether you would like to completely avoid episiotomy at any cost, undertaking the risk of a possible rupture. The point I am trying to make is that the rules are not so rigid and the doctors are more open to a discussion nowadays than a person would initially think.
Hi Julia,
Thanks for your thoughtful reply!
1. I would have to disagree on the cost issue, though. A higher-end obstetrician these days charges around HUF 10 000 per visit, and HUF 100 000 for the birth itself. So if you start attending prenatal care when you’re in your first month, you’ll end up paying about a total of HUF 200-250 000 for the pregnancy and birth of your baby if you have the Hungarian health insurance. By contrast, both Rózsakert and First Med charge a flat rate for prenatal care that’s 200-300 000, and does not include the cost of Telki, which is about HUF 600 000 for a vaginal birth, but they charge fee-for-service, which means it’ll be more if you want an epidural or end up having a C-section, or needing any extra procedures. Yes, if you have private insurance, their packages are very nice, and you may not “see” the actual cost. You may also be correct in your assessment if you do not have the Hungarian health insurance, because I actually don’t know what the Hungarian system charges for lab tests and other procedures you need during pregnancy. I do know, however, that at a state hospital, the cost of a vaginal birth is HUF 80 000, and the cost of a C-section is about HUF 130 000. So for an uncomplicated pregnancy and birth, you can expect to pay a total of about HUF 300 000 if you designate a doctor and have your baby at a Hungarian state hospital if you do not have the Hungarian health insurance and pay everything out of pocket. Which is still a great deal less than the HUF 800 000 – 1 000 000 you would spend at a private clinic and Telki.
2. I know Telki has lots of doctors who work there who speak other languages. My experience, though, suggests that when you show up at Telki, at first your doctor will not be there, and you’ll be attended by the nurse and doctor on duty, and they may very well not speak English. Your doctor is likely to only be called to the hospital once you are in active labor, approaching full dilation. And after your birth, you’ll still have 3-5 days at the hospital, during which time again you’ll be attended by the regular staff, and it’s about 50-50 who speaks English and who doesn’t.
3. I agree that the doctor’s person makes a huge difference in how medicated the birth ends up being. Some doctors simply use interventions more readily and more often than others. However, all doctors are constrained by the hospital policies and by the policies of the head doctor in particular at that hospital. So your doctor can always be overruled by the head doctor if there is a question about your care. And at that point, it comes down to the professional philosophy of the head doctor at that hospital, and you don’t always know that in advance. Some hospitals simply have a reputation for being more interventionist than others. Yes, you’re right, that even at the most interventionist hospital it’s possible to end up lucky with the right doctor and the right kind of quick and uncomplicated birth. My point is only that your chances are higher at a hospital that is known for being non-interventionist.
I’d also like to address your point about episiotomies. Several large studies have now indicated that episiotomies actually increase the chance of a 3rd or 4th degree tear – precisely the type of bad tear they were meant to avoid. The WHO has actually contraindicated routine episiotomies since 1997, and yet in Hungary, they are still performed routinely, even at the most non-interventionist hospitals.
thank you for this post, it was very informative.
i have one question. i am stydying in Hungary (i’m not from EU) and i want to have insuranse in case of pregnancy. do you know where i can find it? and what will be with my baby if he will be born here, in hungary? will goverment accept him to love here, while i’m studying? or they will send me home before delivery?
Hello
We are in Debrecen. (from US originally) we went to an OB/GYN under recommendation for our first visit. My wife is now concerned, shes been doing some background reading and didnt get the full physical, history or baseline obs such as blood pressure, weight, height. No listening to heart and lungs… etc. Is this standard for Hungary? we paid 10 000 for this.
Any feedback gratefully received.
Telki is just a money sucking resort and not a hospital…management is just so irresponsible. You will be better off at Govt hospitals. Telki does not have any equipment to react to emergency and they are too far for the specialist govt hospitals or services. Post that you will be left to battle on your own. Please do yourself a favor to avoid a regret.