The Healthcare System in Uzbekistan: Hospital Network, Emergencies, Medicines and Health Risks

France Diplomatie describes a medical and hospital network that does not meet European standards, particularly outside the capital. The official pages consulted do not detail the organisation of the system (compulsory insurance, levels of care, funding): no figure on population coverage or health spending is therefore reproduced here. For emergencies, the French embassy distinguishes the large cities such as Samarkand, Bukhara and Urgench, where you should contact the republican emergency service whose details are on its website, from the rest of the country, where first aid is obtained at the nearest hospital.

For an expatriate, this situation has two practical consequences: choosing housing according to distance from a care point, and the need for insurance covering evacuation. Road accidents, numerous and sometimes fatal especially at night, are the emergency reason most cited by France Diplomatie.

The rules for affiliating a foreign employee to the local scheme and access by a foreign resident to benefits are not described by the official pages consulted: the employer specifies them. In practice, residents rely on international health insurance or on the CFE (the French social security fund for expatriates), because the French State does not cover healthcare costs abroad.

France Diplomatie is categorical: a contract covering all medical costs, including surgery and hospitalisation, as well as medical repatriation, is imperative. It adds that some insurers have no local representative: check, before taking out a policy, how the insurer operates in Uzbekistan. The page on healthcare reimbursement in Uzbekistan compares the solutions available.

In Tashkent, the French embassy recommends an international clinic, whose doctors and several staff members speak English or French, which can advise and liaise with local hospitals and insurers for a repatriation; it is not, however, equipped for emergencies. The embassy also cites a private medical centre in the capital whose staff speak only Russian, which offers home visits in Tashkent. Healthcare establishments in Tashkent are therefore chosen according to language, access to assistance and coverage by your insurer.

• Ambulance: 103, dialling # or * from a mobile.
• Outside large cities: contact the nearest hospital for first aid.
• French embassy in Tashkent: +998 71 232 81 00 (Istiqbol 25), which also covers Tajikistan.

Before any blood transfusion, contact a doctor known to the embassy. For serious cases, a transfer abroad may be necessary: see the guide to the course of a medical repatriation.

Medicines must be declared to customs, with the original prescription translated into Uzbek, Russian or English, in their original packaging with their labels, and listed under their international nonproprietary name. Some medicines sold legally in France are banned from import, and import generally requires authorisation from the Ministry of Health; a list of pharmaceutical products admitted for personal use without authorisation is published on the legal portal lex.uz. Some medicines prescribed in France, such as tramadol, are treated as narcotics; the list of controlled substances is in Cabinet of Ministers decree No. 330 of 12 November 2015. No medicine should be bought from street vendors, because of the risk of counterfeits.

For chronic treatment, check before departure that each active ingredient is authorised and keep prescriptions in your hand luggage. If in doubt, the embassy can direct you to a doctor known to it.

France Diplomatie states that pollution peaks, with an air quality index above 200, regularly affect the capital. Vulnerable people, the elderly, young children, pregnant women and people with chronic respiratory diseases, are invited to check air quality and to postpone their trip if necessary. During peaks, it is advisable to reduce outdoor activities, stay hydrated and keep doors and windows closed.

The continental climate also calls for precautions: summers are very hot, sometimes above 50 °C, and winters harsh but dry, with temperatures of -5 to -10 °C and sometimes -20 °C. For children, the elderly and vulnerable people, these contrasts weigh on the choice of housing and of heating and air-conditioning equipment.

France Diplomatie asks you to keep the vaccines in the French schedule up to date (diphtheria, tetanus, polio, whooping cough, measles), as some countries may ask for the vaccination record on arrival. It then cites, depending on the conditions and length of stay: hepatitis A, typhoid fever, hepatitis B (frequent or prolonged stays), tuberculosis (children under 15 on frequent or prolonged stays) and rabies (young children, stays in rural or isolated areas). A consultation with a doctor or at an international vaccination centre, well before departure, leaves time for boosters.

• Typhoid fever: transmitted by water, contaminated food or contact between people; symptoms appear about three weeks after exposure; prevention through hygiene and vaccination.
• Rabies: almost always fatal once symptoms have appeared; avoid animals and consult immediately after any exposure, even if vaccination is up to date.
• Tuberculosis: airborne transmission; prevention through the BCG vaccine, early screening and complete treatment.

As the hospital network does not meet European standards and some insurers have no local representative, the choice of contract comes down to practical criteria that France Diplomatie invites you to check. Who concretely organises care in Tashkent and in the large cities? Does the insurer work with the capital’s international clinic, able to advise and coordinate with local hospitals? How is a medical repatriation decided and who advances the costs? Does the contract cover road accidents, the first emergency reason cited? Are stays of more than three months covered without being treated as an expatriation?

• Direct billing: to be favoured with private establishments, to avoid paying up front.
• Language: the staff of a private medical centre in the capital speak only Russian, whereas the international clinic offers consultations in English or French.
• Medical history: an accurate medical questionnaire avoids refusals of cover after the fact; see the guide to the medical questionnaire and medical history.
• Chronic illnesses: keep translated prescriptions and reports, because the import of certain medicines is banned or treated as that of narcotics.

A resident organises their cover before arrival: choice of contract, checking that the insurer operates in Uzbekistan, coverage of evacuation and direct billing, medical questionnaire. The guide to the medical questionnaire and medical history helps you anticipate exclusions, and the guide to budgeting for health abroad gives benchmarks for setting your budget. For life on the spot, also see the page on living in Uzbekistan.