Lucy871

Hi there!
My name is Lucy and I wish to relocate to Spain with my retired parents, my father has a few health complications and we are currently living in France where he gets most of his medical care covered, is this the case in Spain?How does the system work? Do they have anything like the NHS?Do you have to take out insurance?Are the hospitals good?Thankyou for reading XXX LuCy

mikelincs

Health care is generally very good, however, you do need to chack on the availability of the drugs your father is taking, one member on here needed a specific drug, was promised it was available, but when they arrived here it was only available via an expensive private prescription. Certain parts of Spain have severe money problems for drugs, and many of the more up to date, and therefore expensive, drugs just aren't available on the Spanish NHS. His medical care would be covered, but he would have to get a form from the DWP and then get registered in Spain, he would, however have to pay part of ant prescription costs as there are no free prescriptions for pensioners in Spain even the Spanish ones.

Lucy871

He needs cathatars every week, currently the French health system is paying for them but they cost alot, how would this be in Spain?

Rosemary

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

A couple of years ago I would have said that it would not be a problem but prescribing has become tighter and tighter since then so it is difficult to say and I am not sure how you would be able to find out.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

agoreira

Not sure if anyone here would know the answer to that, but you would need to check beforehand, I don't think the Spanish system is as generous as the French system. Some medicines in Spain are reasonably priced, but those not on the official list can be very expensive, even to the Spanish. Spain is cutting back on many things, and health has taken a bit of a hammering lately and I wouldn't be at all surprised if there were more cuts/charges on the way.

tebo53

How and where can you check what meds are available? Do they also give the prices to be paid? Who compiles these lists?

missile

A Spanish friend of ours moved to France for treatment - might give you a clue?

Rosemary

If they are available on the normal prescription system then there would probably be 10% of the cost to pay. If he needs a lot of different things this could start adding up. Also a lot of things are not available on this system and you have to pay the full costs but it is difficult to find this out.

Rosemary

agoreira

You'll need to look for the list, it is available on the net, haven't got time to look now, but you need to look for "la lista definitiva de fármacos excluidos de financión". Some of the pills at the top of the list cost around £140 a month (no idea what they are for!), and even then I've no idea if things like catheters (catéters in Spanish) are included. But you really need to talk to someone that actually knows what they are talking about, don't make the move based on something you read on a forum!
Edit. List here, but think it's only pills, creams etc, haven't had a good look tbh.
http://www.yumpu.com/es/document/vie...mentos-consoft

Porth

As some on this forum will know we left Spain in October then to UK then to France and where we have lived for many years. My wife has a medical problem which is covered 100% in France. In Spain we were promised the drug but it was not delivered save for a holding exercise. But Valencia Health authority basically said 'you must be joking' We are able to compare the Health system in France to Spain and please believe me France is light years ahead (in our experience)

Yes France is struggling to reduce national debt but if the 5th Republique dared like Cyprus to put their hands in your bank account the the revolution of 1787 would start once more.

As to Health in France you generally contribute by way of top up insurance but for say 11 illnesses which are designated as malade de longue duree you get 100% cover. Also preventative medicine/approach is high in France. I would never ever wish to see the inside of the Salud in Javea ever again.

I would also recommend you contact the Health Team at the Consulate in Alicante. Written guarantees would be preferred!