Call 112. Do not wait for your insurer to approve life-saving care.
EMERGENCIES · HEALTHCARE · INSURANCE
The moment to learn Lithuania’s emergency system is before you need it.
Lithuania is safe and medical help in Vilnius and Kaunas is generally straightforward to reach. The paperwork becomes less charming when you are in pain, your insurer is asleep in another time zone and somebody asks whether you mean EHIC, GHIC or private insurance. Here is the useful version.
SERIOUS OR LIFE-THREATENING112
Call first. Explain second.
Dial 112 anywhere in Lithuania for ambulance, police or fire. It is free. Say what happened, your exact location or a visible landmark, how many people need help and whether anyone is unconscious, struggling to breathe or bleeding heavily. Stay on the line and follow the operator’s instructions.
Use 112 for: chest pain suggesting a heart attack, stroke signs, severe breathing difficulty, major bleeding, serious road injury, loss of consciousness, seizure that does not stop, severe allergic reaction, poisoning, a rapidly spreading facial or neck swelling, or any situation where delay may threaten life or limb.
Do not drive around choosing a hospital during a true emergency. The ambulance team routes you according to the condition and current service. Google Maps is an excellent restaurant critic and a poor triage nurse.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT DOOR
Emergency, urgent, or merely miserable?
Not every bad day needs an ambulance. Some absolutely do.
Call your insurer’s assistance line, a clinic or the nearest hospital emergency department. Ask where to attend and what documents to bring.
Start with a pharmacist, private GP clinic or your insurer’s telemedicine service. A pharmacist cannot replace a doctor but can prevent an unnecessary midnight tour of hospitals.
THE INSURANCE TRANSLATOR
One card, three systems, several traps.
Carry the document, but also understand what it is not.
GHIC or a still-valid UK EHIC
A UK GHIC or eligible UK EHIC gives access to medically necessary state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay, on the same basis as a person insured in Lithuania. Depending on the service, that may still involve a patient charge.
It does not cover private healthcare, treatment you travelled to receive, mountain or other rescue, or repatriation to the UK. It is not a substitute for travel insurance. If you do not have the card with you, ask NHS Overseas Healthcare Services about a Provisional Replacement Certificate.
EHIC
The EHIC principle is similar: necessary state healthcare during a temporary stay under the local system’s terms. It is not a blank cheque, does not turn a private clinic into a state provider and does not cover planned treatment or the cost of flying you home.
Show the card before treatment where possible and ask whether the provider participates in the public system. Keep every receipt, prescription, referral and discharge note.
Assume you may need to pay first
Most US health plans are not accepted directly by Lithuanian providers. Medicare and Medicaid generally do not cover care abroad. A clinic or hospital may request payment or proof of cover, and you may have to seek reimbursement later.
Before travelling, ask the insurer specifically about Lithuania, emergency outpatient care, hospital admission, pre-existing conditions, deductibles, direct billing, medical evacuation and repatriation. Save the international assistance number — not only the domestic number printed in microscopic type.
Call early, document everything
For a non-life-threatening problem, contact the 24-hour assistance line before choosing a provider. The insurer may direct you to a partner clinic, issue a payment guarantee or require pre-authorisation. In an emergency, get help first and notify the insurer as soon as reasonably possible.
Photograph receipts and reports before surrendering originals. Record the case number, time, person spoken to and instructions. “A friendly gentleman on the telephone said it would be fine” is not a claims document.
BEFORE YOU LEAVE
A five-minute medical admin kit.
Store it offline. A dead battery is not interested in your cloud strategy.
Carry or save
- Passport or national ID, plus a secure copy stored separately
- GHIC/EHIC and travel-insurance certificate
- Insurer’s international assistance number and policy number
- Emergency contact and accommodation address
- Medication list using generic names, doses and allergies
- Relevant conditions and recent treatment summary
Medication
- Keep medicines in original labelled packaging
- Carry enough for the trip plus a sensible delay margin
- Bring the prescription or doctor’s letter where relevant
- Check Lithuanian rules for controlled medicines before travel
- Do not expect an identical brand name or over-the-counter classification
VILNIUS & KAUNAS
Hospitals are not interchangeable taxi destinations.
Departments, age groups and clinical pathways differ. For serious cases use 112; for stable cases call before travelling.
Major emergency routes
Republican Vilnius University Hospital is a major adult emergency and trauma route at Šiltnamių g. 29. Santaros Klinikos at Santariškių g. 2 provides major tertiary services. The correct destination depends on the condition, age and current routing — call 112 for emergencies or the hospital before setting off.
Major emergency route
Hospital of Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kauno Klinikos has emergency services at its Eivenių campus, Eivenių g. 2. Kaunas also has other emergency departments and specialist routing. Do not turn a serious event into a self-guided hospital crawl: call 112.
PHARMACIES AFTER DARK
“Open all night” is a fact with an expiry date.
Hours change on holidays, during staffing shortages and sometimes without asking a travel guide for permission.
Call before taking a taxi
Current pharmacy listings identify the Gintarinė pharmacy at Varnių g. 39-9 as a duty pharmacy. BENU’s published holiday information has also listed its Kaunas duty pharmacy at Žemaičių g. 31 as operating around the clock. Verify the live hours by telephone or the chain’s store finder before travelling.
Do not rely on an old 24/7 list
Vilnius duty arrangements have changed repeatedly; locations previously described as 24-hour have later reduced or interrupted night service. Use the live pharmacy finders and telephone first. If medicine cannot safely wait until morning, call 112 or ask the relevant hospital service where to go.
A prescription from abroad may not always be dispensable exactly as written, and brand names differ. Bring the original package or a photo of the active ingredient and strength. Never use the pharmacy as a substitute for emergency assessment.
URGENT DENTAL PAIN
The tooth has not read your itinerary.
Vilnius and Kaunas have many private dental clinics, and a same-day assessment is often easier to arrange than visitors expect — but call, describe the symptoms and ask the complete price before attending.
Usually a dentist first
Broken tooth, lost filling, toothache or localised gum pain usually starts with a dental clinic. Ask whether they can assess an international patient today, whether X-rays and emergency treatment are available, what the consultation costs and how payment works. A low advertised filling price is not the bill for examination, imaging, anaesthetic and treatment combined.
Emergency means emergency
Call 112 for breathing or swallowing difficulty, rapidly increasing facial or neck swelling, uncontrolled bleeding, major facial trauma, loss of consciousness or severe systemic illness. Do not spend the night sending photographs to twelve dentists while an airway problem develops.
For a clinic search, verify both the institution and named dentist through Lithuania’s official licensing information. Private care is normally paid directly unless your insurer confirms otherwise.
THE FIRST TEN MINUTES
If something happens, do this.
- For danger to life or limb, call 112 immediately.
- Give the exact location and a callback number.
- For a stable problem, call the insurer’s assistance line.
- Ask whether the provider is public, private or insurer-approved.
- Show GHIC/EHIC before state treatment where possible.
- Do not sign away card rights without understanding the form.
- Ask for the expected price and payment method.
- Keep itemised receipts, prescriptions and medical reports.
- Request an English discharge summary where available.
- Notify the insurer promptly and record the case number.
- Contact your embassy for lost documents or consular help — not medical payment.
- After returning home, give the records to your usual clinician.
OFFICIAL SOURCES
Check the live rule, not a screenshot from 2022.
UK travel advice · Lithuania healthNHS · GHICEuropean Commission · EHICUS State Department · LithuaniaLithuania 112
Reviewed 5 September 2026. Hospital routing, insurance terms and pharmacy hours can change. This guide explains the system; the emergency operator, treating provider and your insurer decide the live case.
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