What KK and Medusa's friend described, is pretty much how it works in Denmark too. There can be short waiting lists for things that are not life threatening, like a hip operation. If the patient requires immediate attention, he/she will be referred to a private hospital and NHS will pay the bill.

Like in UK, everybody here is entitled to healthcare through the NHS (National Health Service) funded through taxation. The individual does not pay for operations, treatment, hospital clinic, or doctor’s appointments. However, we do pay for dentist treatment.

If someone need a lot of prescription medicine, they pay the full amount for it the first time, and after that, the amount is deducted with a certain percentage for the following purchases for one year, so that you pay less and less. It starts all over again after a year.