Hospitals in Luxembourg: what help is available and who can get it

The Grand Duchy is ranked number 11 in the list of the healthiest countries by Bloomberg Global Health Index for 2022. All citizens have free access to the public health system (Caisse Nationale de Santé – CNS), which includes pharmacies, medical centers, hospitals, patient care services, etc.

Hospitals in Luxembourg can easily be identified by their typical facade: an English white H letter on a blue background.

How to get hospital treatment and emergency care in Luxembourg

In order to get access to hospitals in Luxembourg, it is necessary to have health insurance: all medical care in the Grand Duchy, except for the ambulance, requires private or public health insurance, covering a wide range of services, like lab tests, treatment, prescription of drugs, hospitalization and hospital care, rehabilitation, pregnancy and childbirth costs and much, much more.

If you don't have medical insurance, emergency aid is still available for you: call 112 and you will get a free medical assistance. But in order to hospitalize someone, a doctor's prescription will be necessary.

Luxembourg hospitals provide urgent care through emergency departments (cas d'urgence or spoedgeval), but not all of the hospitals do that. Since ambulance services are not available in every hospital in Luxembourg, there is a special schedule that hospitals follow to provide after-hours medical care. You can find out information on open emergencies at pharmacies, local newspapers, doctors' offices, and at the hospitals themselves.

When your children need ambulance help, children's hospitals are the place to go. They will take care of children of any other age, up to 14 years old.

1. KANNER KLINIK is located at 4, rue Ernest Barblé, L-1210 Luxembourg. Emergency call: +352 4411-6148.
2. HÔPITAUX ROBERT SCHUMAN is located at 5, rue Edward Steiche, L-2540 Luxembourg. Emergency call: +35224685540.

In contrast to emergency hospitalization, you can make an appointment and choose your specialist beforehand, in case you plan to receive hospital treatment beforehand. Patients can choose the doctor and hospital they want, the health insurance system covers this too. You can find a doctor on the special website.

For a stationary stay, you should bring a change of clothes and comfortable shoes, bed linen, pajamas, slippers, and toiletries, as well as money to buy extra drinks, pay for the Internet, etc.

General Hospitals in Luxembourg

General medical centers can also be called multi-specialty hospitals. These are the medical institutions where patients are treated for a wide variety of health problems.

Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg

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One of the major and best medical centers in Luxembourg, located in the south of the capital.

It has four hospitals, two of which are specialized and two — general hospitals.

CHL is a full-service medical center that provides all kinds of care to patients, including emergency medical and dental care.

The official website of Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg: https://www.chl.lu/

Les Hôpitaux Robert Schuman

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Like the Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg, it's a large medical center, that includes 4 hospitals:

The official website of Les Hôpitaux Robert Schuman: https://www.hopitauxschuman.lu/fr/

Center Hospitalier Emile Mayrisch (CHEM)

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Another large medical center in Luxembourg, includes 3 facilities:

The official website of Center Hospitalier Emile Mayrisch (CHEM): https://www.chem.lu/

Centre Hospitalier du Nord

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It is a general hospital in the north of Luxembourg. There are clinics in Ettelbrück and Wiltz.

• CHDN Ettelbruck located at 120 Av. Lucien Salentiny, L-9080 Ettelbruck. Phone: +352 81661.
• CHDN Wiltz located at 10 Rue Grande-Duchesse Charlotte, L-9515 Wiltz. Phone: +352 81669.

The official website of Centre Hospitalier du Nord: https://www.chdn.lu/

Specialized hospitals in Luxembourg

In addition to general hospitals, there are also specialized clinics in Luxembourg.

Specialized care can be provided in a number of areas, from maternity, gynecology and pregnancy care to radiotherapy and geriatrics.

• Obstetrics, gynecology, and pregnancy care,
• Cardiology,
• Dermatology,
• Pediatrics,
• Psychiatry,
• Ophthalmology,
• Orthopedics,
• Radiation Therapy,
• Urology,
• Rehabilitation,
• Geriatrics, etc.

Pregnancy care: CHL Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg Maternité

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As part of the CHL Medical Center, this specialized hospital in Luxembourg offers a wide range of services for pregnant women and even supports water delivery. A special room in the maternity ward is equipped for this purpose.

The clinic is located at 2, rue Federspiel, L-1512 Luxembourg (Belair). Phone:  (+352) 44 11 11.

Government health insurance covers most of the costs of pregnancy. But it doesn't include home delivery. However, if a woman is giving birth for the first time, she may be advised not to give birth at home.

The official website of CHL Centre Hospitalier du Luxembourg Maternité: https://maternite.chl.lu/

Pediatrics: CHL - KannerKlinik

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Another specialized hospital in Luxembourg, part of the CHL Medical Center, focused on pediatrics. The hospital is located in the south of the capital at 4, rue Ernest Barblé, L-1210 Luxembourg (Belair). Phone: (+352) 44 11 31 33.

In Luxembourg, parents have the right to choose a pediatrician themselves. According to the law of the Grand Duchy, children under the age of 29 are co-insured with the parent who pays the common medical contributions.

The official website of CHL- KannerKlinik: https://kannerklinik.chl.lu/

Psychiatrics: Rehaklinik

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A hospital focused on psychiatric rehabilitation and has several departments. The hospital helps with the treatment of anxiety and psychotic disorders, depression, and addictions.

• Most of the departments of this medical center — BU2,  BU3, Horizon, Orangerie 1, Um Wee — Ettelbruck at 17 avenue des Alliés, L-9012 Ettelbruck. Phone: (+352) 2682-3700.
• One department of general psychiatry deserves special attention. It is Rehaklinik — CTD (Centre Thérapeutique Diekirch). The center is concerned directly with rehabilitating people who are not in the emergency phase. It is located at 1 rue Clairefontaine, L-9220 Diekirch. Phone: (+352) 2680 0835.

The official website of Rehaklinik: https://www.rehaklinik.lu/

Cardiology: INCCI

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Institut National de Chirurgie Cardiaque et de Cardiologie Interventionnelle is one of the best hospitals in Luxembourg, specializing in the invasive treatment of cardiovascular diseases (i.e. surgical operations).  The leading cardiac surgeons and anesthesiologists work here.

INCCI is located at 2A, rue Nicolas Ernest Barblé, L - 1210 Luxembourg. Phone: +352 26 25 50 00.

The official website of INCCI: https://www.incci.lu/fr/

Rehabilitation: Rehazenter

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An outstanding medical center specializing in the rehabilitation of people who have suffered an injury.

The National Center for Functional Rehabilitation is located in Grunewald, on the east of Kirchberg at 1, rue André Vésale, L-2674 Luxembourg. Phone: +352 2698 1.

The official website of Rehazenter: https://rehazenter.lu/fr/

Radiology: Centre François Baclesse Centre National de Radiothérapie

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The François Buckless Center of the National Center for Radiation Therapy of Luxembourg provides care for patients with curative or palliative indications for radiotherapy.

Centre François Baclesse is located at Rue Emile Mayrisch, L-4240 Esch/Alzette. Phone: 26 55 66-1. You can access the radiology via the main entrance of Centre Hospitalier Emile Mayrisch (CHEM), turning left from the CHEM cafeteria.

The official website of Centre François Baclesse Centre National de Radiothérapie: https://www.baclesse.lu/index.php

Geriatric care: Clinique Saint Marie

Clinique Saint Marie hospital is a part of Les Hôpitaux Robert Schuman. They are focused on helping the elderly and treating senior illnesses, including home care and nursing home services at Saint Marie.

The clinic is scheduled to reopen in Kirchberg's new location, but for now, it is located at 7-11, rue Wurth-Paquet, L-4350 Esch-sur-Alzette. Phone: +352 57123 1.

The official website of Clinique Saint Marie: https://www.hopitauxschuman.lu/fr/etablissement/clinique-sainte-marie/

What to expect at the hospitals in Luxembourg

When you are to be treated as an ambulant (i.e. when you visit a hospital) or an inpatient (i.e. when you stay in a ward all the time), you will need to provide some documents — identity papers, such as a passport, and a CNS Card. A deposit will be required if you do not have health insurance.

There are three classes of hospital care in Luxembourg:

• 1st class care: single-person room, available to those who have purchased private health insurance.
• 2nd class care: 2 to 3 people in the room with you. CNS insurance covers the treatment in this class, both ambulant and inpatient care.
• 3d class care: 4 and more people in the room with you. This type of medical accommodation is usually provided in case the ward is full.

Most doctors and nursing staff in Luxembourg speak English, but not all of them — so if you do not know French or another national language, you may need the help of an interpreter.

Visiting a patient

Depending on the particular Luxembourg hospital, there are usually a few hours in the afternoon reserved for visits. Visits are usually allowed daily from 2:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. and by appointment from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. However, you should check the hours on the hospital's website or by phone.

Discharge from hospital

If you are hospitalized by a licensed hospital doctor, you will be discharged by your attending physician. As an ambulatory patient, you have the right to leave the hospital at any time. However, you may be asked to sign a statement of discharge, against the doctor's opinion, if you terminate the treatment early.

In any case, upon discharge, the medical staff will give you the necessary documents and tell you whether there are any special instructions for your further treatment — as regime, diet, further visits to the hospital, if necessary, etc.

The cost of medical treatment

When it comes to medical expenses, most of them (up to 90%) are eligible for reimbursement by insurance. However, it's important to keep in mind some important details:

• To be reimbursed, you must first pay for the treatment and then collect the documents and send them to the CNS. Then a decision will be made on the amount to be reimbursed. The refund will come within 3 weeks.
• During hospital treatment, even with health insurance, patients (except children under 18) pay €24.27 per stay for a 2nd class care and €12.14 for ambulatory care. In case of hospitalization during labor and delivery, the fee is not charged for the first 12 days. If you stay in a 1st class care room, the fee itself and the medical services costs are increased by 66%, but you can only be placed there with a medical condition.
• Not all costs are reimbursed by the state health insurance, so some expats sign a contract with a private company to cover extra costs (for example, for a 1st class care).