Healthcare in Milan

Healthcare in Milan

Italy's national health service, the SSN, runs public care in Milan through the Lombardy region. EHIC and GHIC holders get medically necessary state care on resident terms and pay the same co-pays. Private care, repatriation and non-urgent treatment are not covered, so you still need travel insurance.

Niguarda in north Milan and the Policlinico near the Duomo are the main public hospitals with 24-hour emergency departments. The Policlinico has an English website and an international patient office that issues estimates and invoices. San Raffaele, in the east, and Humanitas, in Rozzano just south of the city, are private hospitals accredited with the SSN.

Private lab chains and hospital labs selling check-up packages take you without a referral, and you pay at the desk. A basic panel costs about €16–25, cheap enough that many people skip the GP referral.

Getting seen as a foreigner in Milan

Book directly with the hospital or clinic rather than through the regional booking line. In March 2026 Lombardy's single booking system covered only 8 of about 400 accredited private providers. Its operators often quote first dates months away, so phoning the provider is usually faster.

For an out-of-hours GP, call 116117 instead of turning up at a clinic. The line runs weekday nights from 20:00 to 08:00 and around the clock on weekends and holidays. The operator triages you by phone and sends you to a clinic or arranges a home visit.

Check live queues on the region's SALUTILE Pronto Soccorso app before choosing an ER. It shows how many patients are waiting and in treatment at each nearby emergency department, by triage colour. Private specialists need no referral and can often be booked online for the same week.

What healthcare costs in Milan

Most people in Milan mix public and private care. With an SSN referral you pay a ticket capped at about €36 per prescription, not per visit. Public waits are long, and 79% of Lombardy patients say they have paid privately at least once.

Lombardy scrapped its extra regional superticket in 2020, so only the national ticket cap applies.

Pharmacies

Milan's pharmacies cover nights and holidays on a duty rota. The Pronto Farmacia freephone, 800 801 185, runs 24/7 and tells you which ones are open. A few central pharmacies open around the clock, near Piazzale Loreto and Cadorna; the Centrale station pharmacy closes at 20:00. A paper prescription from another EU country is valid if it names the generic medicine. Prescriptions from outside the EU are not filled, so an Italian doctor has to write a new one. With an EHIC or GHIC you then pay the same co-pay as residents.

Health tips

Common visitor health risks in Milan

Emergency

Emergency number: 112

112 is Lombardy's single number, with live interpreting. 118 also works and goes straight to medical dispatch.

Italian by default, English at major hospitals

Expect Italian on booking lines, out-of-hours GP calls and at many pharmacies. The emergency line offers real-time interpreting.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

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27. [28] Greenme, Milano, limite annuale PM10 superato a marzo
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