What is the fine for missing a meeting with a doctor in Switzerland?

The practice of billing for lost medical or dental appointments is common in many countries even though current amounts vary.

Switzerland is no different, writes The Local, broadcasts albinfo.ch.

The general rule ) which is posted to a prominent location in the doctor's office is this: you won't get lucky if you cancel your appointment until 24 hours ago. (However, a visit Monday morning presents a challenge, as there is no way patients can cancel within this deadline. You should ask the office how they handle these situations.

The reason a lost meeting will cost you money is simple: the doctor has set a specific time for you on a specific day, which will be billed to your health insurance company, and the doctor will be paid back in return.

If you call within 24 hours to cancel your appointment, the doctor will likely use that interval for another patient. But if you just don't show up, or call very close to the scheduled visit for another patient to take your interval, then the doctor will have a “boscal” unfortunate in his schedule.

How much will you be charged with?

That depends.

The usual fee for losing a meeting is 50 francs, which you'll have to pay from your own pocket, because security doesn't cover this fee.

This is the minimum amount for the loss of a simple medical consultation.

However, the fee may be higher if your meeting includes an additional procedure or examination.

And in some cases, you can end up paying a lot more.

In a recent social media post, a person reported that he had to cancel a planned medical procedure (an endoscope) by a specialist with a brief report, namely, less than 24 hours.

Then they got a receipt for... 850 francs!

Is that justified?

While this amount may seem too exaggerated when you consider all aspects of such a meeting, it is not.

Instead of simply discussing the patient's condition and writing a prescription, this particular medical procedure will likely include additional expenses such as calmness (and for this reason the presence of an anesthesiologist and/or other staff), monitoring the procedure, and likely there are other expenses.

What if you have an emergency and cancel it in less than 24 hours?

You may have a valid and legitimate reason to cancel your appointment with a brief announcement.

This may include a family death, for example, an accident that prevents you from going to your doctor's office or other emergencies or inevitable circumstances beyond your control.

In such cases a doctor may cancel the fee according to his or her trial, especially if you are a long - term patient.

What happens if you don't pay this fee?

Almost the same situation when you have delays.

And that means, you'll get a few mail reports and then if the bill is still unpaid you'll get payment calls from your debt enforcement office, giving you 20 days to resolve. /Periscopi