Patient travel

Patients participating in clinical trials may be reimbursed for their travel expenses. It is a requirement that the clinical trial concerned has been approved by the regional health authority or health trust. The clinical trial is then regarded as treatment, and travel expenses are covered according to current rules. Any expense claims must be submitted within six months, and the minimum payment amount is NOK 100. In the event of there being multiple small amounts to claim, these can be combined if the patient is entitled to be reimbursed for multiple expenses within a six-month period. If the total of such expenses amounts to at least NOK 100, the amounts can be claimed for as one amount.

You can read more about patient travel on the helsenorge.no website (https://www.helsenorge.no/en/patient-travel)

In general, patients must pay a share of their travel expenses. This share will amount to NOK 149 each way per trip. If the patient exercises their right to free choice of hospital outside their own region, their share will amount to NOK 400 each way. However, if the health service is provided at the nearest possible location, or the regional health authority does not offer the healthcare in question in the patient’s own region, the patient’s share will remain NOK 149 each way.

Exceptions apply; no patient’s share is payable:

  1. for companions
  2. for children under the age of 16
  3. when travelling for examination or treatment of an occupational injury or war injury
  4. when travelling for examination, treatment or control of a hazardous infectious disease
  5. when travelling to be admitted to compulsory psychiatric care
  6. when travelling for compulsory psychiatric care without an overnight stay in an institution
  7. for relatives’ travel to a psychiatric outpatient clinic for children and young people, providing the travel meets the conditions in Section 19 b of the Patient Travel Regulations
  8. for donors travelling in connection with transplants
  9. when transferring between institutions within a regional health authority or health trust
  10. when travelling to participate in the processing of an application for abortion in a primary committee or central appeals committee