7immyboy

Hi Gang

Baffled currently..

What is the best way forward in terms of healthcare in the form of insurance?

My mind is spinning, my soul, all but destroyed and my spirit crushed....by spending most of the day on the phone to seemingly inept Insurance companies, trying to ascertain the best option.

I am no richer in knowledge than when i started, all i gained was a crick in my neck and a new founded level of contempment for Direct Line.

So what ya reckon dudes? can i jsut get a healthcare policy in Cyprus when i get there?....or should i get covered before i come?..

Ta Muchly

Timbo

3 weeks, 5 days & 45 minutes and counting

Mitzyboy

Well, I know this relates to Spain .... but before I left I tried all kinds of companies, and the rates were horrendous. All very expensive, £300 a month with BUP almost.

Well my E106 was running out and I started again and rang Spanish companies ... ended up paying €100 a month with Sanitas .... who are a foreign division of BUPA

So all I am saying is that once you get there you may find a cheaper option than the British rip off companies who say they provide health insurance to ex pats!

7immyboy

Nice one MB...

This is a tough one, all the travel insurance policies restrict how much you can work, which misses the point in its entirety.

I shall sort something out

Mitzyboy

Wont your E106 cover you there for up to two years anyway?

7immyboy

Isn`t that the old E111?.. Yes it would but what a pile of shite, If i am correct you still have to pay out for any medical issues at the full cost, and then you claim it back once you are back in England, or a percentage of, if you are lucky.. I will check this

Valubles, laptop etc are covered on home insurance anyway so its only medical cover i am after, had bad experience last year and had to go home eventually as i didnt have the funds. If it wasnt for that i`d still be there, but hey ho, everything for a reason, so super cautious this time round

Mitzyboy

Well i have to admit I dont know for Cyprus, but in Spain and other EU countries you hand the E106 to the SS office and they issue you wiuth a temporary medical card which you use to access the health system just like any other national .... the health authorities then claim it back from the UK

7immyboy

I gonna ring them and ask them right now

7immyboy

Mitz you are quite right, i have called them and they confirme what you suggest.

That clears that up! Happy days.

Cheers.

Direct Line can go to hell...ppffttt £150

macca01

hi guys
is that the social security office in the uk or the one on cyprus? sorry to be a bit thick, just woke up after a lazy day. (snow bound )

I only thought it covered for emergency treatment? and you had to claim it back once back in the UK.



Michaela

7immyboy

See thats what i thought but i spoke to health authority in this country

0845 6050 707 they issue your card also. They said that there is a small outlay, like £20 or so but it should just be like an NHS setup (god help us) in Cyprus, trick being finding a state hospital. Which is an excellent question..


Michela, Maybe you should call them also, and we can exchange misleading information & stories?..

Is there a state hospital in Paphos?..

Personally i wont be bungie jumping or cliff diving anyway!

Timbo

Nic1

There is a government hospital in Paphos and Limassol. DD had her appendix removed last year while there in Limassol - very basic but a great job and a bit of a bargain at around 700 euros. Would have cost far more than that here. The staff were lovely with her and she has the smallest scar which she is pleased about.

N

7immyboy

Hi Nic

So did you have to pay the 700 Euros? and did you get it back?

Mitzyboy

When you leave the UK you are able to apply for an E106 document which, depending on your past NI contributions will give you up to about 2 years health cover under a state system in europe, subject to local rules. When this cover runs out, you have to get private health cover if you are not working.

When one of a partnership reaches retirement age you can then apply for an E121. That will give you state cover permanently. The other of the partnership will aloso be covered even if they are under retirement age, as a dependent.

Your European Health Card, issued in the UK, will not be relevant if you are no longer a UK resident. Thats for use when you are on holiday, not when you live there. Dont count on it therefore. If you go back to the UK, as Greek resident you will need to get a similar card issued in Greece to cover you in the UK, as you wont automatically be entitled to UK health cover if you return on holiday

Nic1

Hi, yes we paid it and then reclaimed when we got back home. We have private health insurance as we live overseas (but not in Cyprus yet). We use a company local to where we live - and usually have wherever we have lived. Did use BUPA for a while but not recently.

N

7immyboy

Thanks Nic..

I think the trick is to not get ill...