Bridetobe

Hi, just wondering if anyone can clear something up for me?

I am moving to Donegal in Nov from Scotland, and want to know if I can keep using the NHS for sometime after I move, have been told by a friend that she had cover for upto a year after moving back. Also have been told that if I get work in Derry I may still be able to use NHS something to do with cross-border but I have know idea and cant find any info on any of the citizen advice sites. Please help

Thanks

Horus

I was under the impression that you could still pay your national insurance stamps to qualify for your state pension. If doing that also entitles you to use the NHS I don't know.

JAJ

It doesn't.

You need to be a resident of the United Kingdom to be able to use the NHS and the Republic of Ireland has not been part of the United Kingdom since 6 December 1922.

chatterboxmoira

There are some cross border use of medical services but they only tend to be for certain conditions, ie cancers, where the State doesn't have enough beds, specialists, etc.
Unless you pay for private health insurance, you are a public patient and will only pay for a gp visit (around 50euro), A&E visit (100 euro), bed per day/night if admitted (85euro per night to maximum of 400euro, I think, per family per year) and drugs. These can cost a fortune here especially in comparison to NHS prescription charges. Medical expenses can be claimed on tax- you cannot claim on the first 125 euro (250 for a couple), then I think you get back around 40% of the remainder. I stopped claiming because I started buying my repeat prescriptions in Lanzarote (apparently this is a normal thins especially amongst the Swedish), so I now don't pay over 125 euro.

Hope this helps
Moira