If the maximum waiting time for healthcare you were guaranteed is exceeded, you have the right to treatment elsewhere. If you wish to exercise this right, your hospital or treatment centre will contact the Helfo Patient Referral Unit which will find another place of treatment for you.
Illustration: Morten Rakke / Helfo
The guaranteed maximum waiting time gives some indication of how long it is medically defensible for you to wait to receive healthcare. In finding treatment for you elsewhere, Helfo reduces the waiting time and in that way reinforces your rights as a patient.
If you have a case of exceeded waiting time, you have the following rights:
In this article, you can read about what you as a patient need to know about what will / can happen in the event of a case of exceeded waiting time.
If you become sick, you will normally start by consulting your regular GP. If you require treatment, your regular GP can refer you to a hospital or treatment centre (also known as the specialised health service). Other healthcare providers than your regular GP can also refer you.
Examples of healthcare within the specialised health service:
Within 10 working days of receiving the referral, the specialised health service must decide if you have the right to treatment from a specialist. Based on an assessment of your state of health, you will either be offered healthcare within the specialised health service, or be referred back to the original referrer.
If you disagree with the assessment or the guaranteed maximum waiting time you receive from the specialised health service, you can request reassessment of your referral. If your request is rejected, you can file a complaint with the Office of the County Governor in your county.
If you are not offered treatment within a medically justifiable period of time in Norway, you can apply to Helfo for prior authorisation to have your treatment in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland.
Illustration: Morten Rakke / Helfo
The specialised health service is responsible for notifying Helfo if it is unable to provide healthcare to you within the guaranteed maximum waiting time. If you want to exercise your right to treatment elsewhere, Helfo will try to arrange this for you.
If you believe that your guaranteed maximum waiting time has been exceeded but not notified, you can contact Helfo yourself on number 23 32 70 00. Helfo will immediately contact the hospital or treatment centre concerned. If it turns out that your waiting time has been exceeded, the place of treatment will be given a short time limit in which to set a new date for you.
If your guaranteed waiting time has been exceeded, Helfo will contact you to ask if you wish to receive treatment elsewhere.
If Helfo is unable to get hold of you, Helfo will send you a letter asking you to reply as soon as possible if you wish to receive treatment elsewhere. Even if Helfo did not get hold of you, Helfo starts the process of finding an alternative option for you.
If Helfo does not receive a reply from you within the deadline in the letter, you will be referred back to your original place of treatment. You will keep your place on the waiting list there.
Many people whose guaranteed waiting time is exceeded initially receive a smartphone text message with information from Helfo. This will apply to you if your mobile phone number is registered in the DIFI directory (in Norwegian). Click this link to learn more about text messages from Helfo (in Norwegian).
If Helfo is notified about exceeded waiting time for children under 16, Helfo will contact the parents / legal guardian.
When Helfo contacts you, you must answer if you want Helfo to find another treatment centre for you.
If you do not want Helfo to find another treatment centre, you will remain on the waiting list at your original place of treatment. In this case, you should expect to wait longer than the period that has been assessed as medically defensible for your condition. If you change your mind, you can contact Helfo yourself.
If you do want Helfo to find another treatment centre, Helfo will contact the treatment providers it has framework agreements with (in Norwegian). If you accept the treatment that Helfo has arranged, you will be removed from the waiting list of your original place of treatment. For the treatment you receive, you will pay a user fee in accordance with the applicable rates for public healthcare treatment.
If you do not want to take up the offer that Helfo finds for you, Helfo cannot later on propose a new offer of treatment for the same exceeded waiting time.
In some cases, Helfo is unable to find another place of treatment for you. You will then be referred back to the original place of treatment that exceeded the waiting time and will keep your place on the waiting list.
Your original place of treatment will still try to find a place for you even after notifying that it expects to exceed the waiting time. If they find you a place and you have already accepted an offer from another treatment place, you can choose which offer you want to use.
Generally, you will have to make the travel arrangements yourself. Pay expenses, such as coach and train fares, up front, and claim reimbursement afterwards.
To claim reimbursement of these expenses, you must fill in and send a completed patient travel expenses claim form to Pasientreiser. You can not apply digitally.
If you live in Northern Norway and need to fly and/or stay in a hotel, you must call G Travel Pasientreiser (phone 37 05 24 15), which will book and pay for this.
If you live elsewhere in Norway, you must call Pasientreiser (phone 915 05 515), which will book and pay for the flight. If you have to stay in a hotel, you will usually need to arrange this yourself and then submit a reimbursement claim to Pasientreiser.
Note! You must quote the claim number you receive by SMS from Helfo and also mention that you are an «exceeded-waiting-time patient».
If you for medical reasons needs a travel companion, you need a confirmation from your doctor. Enclose this confirmation when you book your trip.
If you have any questions, please call Veiledning helsenorge.no (user service): +47 23 32 70 00
Content provided by Helfo
Last updated Thursday, June 9, 2022