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Coronavirus cases in Austria are ‘twice the reported numbers’

Austria is estimated to have at least twice as many new coronavirus infections than officially reported, a study showed Friday, with more than three per 1,000 people thought to have caught the virus in early April.

Published: 10 April 2020 14:43 CEST

Coronavirus cases in Austria are 'twice the reported numbers'

AFP

The SORA institute-led study found that 0.32 percent of those surveyed in the first week of April tested positive for the new coronavirus.

SORA said it was the first such study in the EU to better understand the virus's prevalence.

The result means some 28,500 of Austria's close to nine million people were likely affected, the institute said, compared to the official statistic of up to 12,200 coronavirus infections for that April week.

SORA said taking into account deviations, between 10,200 and 67,400 people in total could have been affected. The study surveyed 1,544 people.

“There has been the assumption that more people are infected than those officially tested… It's along the lines of other findings so far,” SORA founder Christoph Hofinger told AFP.

The Alpine nation adopted strict confinement measures in the middle of March, ordering people to largely stay at home, only allowing food shops and pharmacies to stay open and restricting people from entering the country.

As the increase in the number of new infections has flattened out, the government says smaller shops and gardening and hardware stores can re-open next week, as a first step in a gradual loosening of measures.

On Friday, Austria reported some 13,400 coronavirus infections with 319 deaths.

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When can I ask for reimbursement for medical expenses in Austria?

Austria’s health system can seem complicated. Most people are insured by statutory insurance companies, ensuring they receive quality care for free in the country.

However, there may be times when you want to go the private route – be it for specific examinations, or if you are searching for a particular specialist or, most commonly, if you just can’t or won’t wait to get an appointment via the public system. As the number of public doctors drops, more and more people have reached out to the “elective” doctors, or to private laboratories for certain exams instead of waiting weeks in the public system.

In those cases, the public health insurance funds often reimburse your expenses, at least partially.

READ ALSO: Six things to know about visiting a doctor in Austria

When can I ask for reimbursement?

There are several cases when you can be reimbursed by Austria’s largest health insurance company, the ÖGK. These include:

Private or elective doctors: Elective doctors do not have a contract with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK). You will therefore be treated there as a private patient and must initially pay for the treatment yourself. In most cases, ÖGK will reimburse part of the costs.
Dental Health: In addition to conservative dental treatment and dentures, the ÖGK dental services also include jaw adjustments (braces).
CT, MRI and x-rays: Computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and X-rays are “diagnostic imaging procedures”. The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers the costs if the examination is carried out at an authorized institute.
Therapists: the ÖGK will cover costs for speech therapy, physio therapy and psychotherapy, among others. You can read more HERE.
Midwives: Midwives support women during pregnancy, during childbirth and in the initial period afterwards. The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers certain costs for the midwife.
Hospital stays: Persons insured with the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) can receive outpatient or inpatient treatment in certain hospitals throughout Austria. The fund will not cover any special fees that are incurred for accommodation in “special class” (some hospitals offer private rooms as special class, for example). For medically necessary treatment in hospitals with which there is no contractual relationship, ÖGK currently pays a daily care cost allowance of € 399.97, but not more than the actual costs incurred.
Medical aids and medication: The Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) covers the costs of medical aids and aids such as hearing aids, diabetes supplies or bandages if you have a doctor’s prescription for them. The ÖGK also covers medication costs, but you need a prescription from a doctor.

READ ALSO: How much can you expect to pay for private healthcare in Vienna?

How much will I get?

The reimbursement does not cover the whole cost. Once the reimbursement is approved, you will get 80 percent of what the ÖGK would have paid to the public system. This is not the same as 80 percent of your invoice.

The insurance fund doesn’t always approve invoices, it will evaluate the need and set up limits (so, you won’t get a refund on every doctor’s visit if you go to the same specialist type in a short period, for example). Particularly if you plan on a big expense, it’s worth it to check with the fund beforehand if they would cover the private costs.

How can I claim reimbursement?

You first need to obtain receipts for all medical expenses, including doctor’s invoices, hospital bills, and pharmacy receipts. You’ll also need to gather payment confirmation. Then, you submit this information as a claim request on the website of your insurance company. With ÖGK, the link is HERE.

You then wait for the processing time, which can take up to several weeks. If your request is approved, you’ll receive the money back straight to the bank account you have in your account details on the insurance website.

READ ALSO: Will my Austrian health insurance pay for medical expenses abroad?

What if I have private insurance?

Most private insurance in Austria work with statutory companies. You’ll follow the same exact path. Once you get confirmation of how much the public insurance will reimburse you (or if it won’t reimburse you), you can then send all these documents to your private insurance. They will pay the difference between what you got from the public company and what you paid in private healthcare.

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