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View Full Version : Health Pensioners will now have to pay towards their medicines. (Canarian Weekly)



jeste747
02-07-2012, 17:02
Does anyone know when this is coming into force and how it will actually work?

Megaloo
02-07-2012, 17:10
Does anyone know when this is coming into force and how it will actually work?

Think it came into force on 1st July not sure but someone told me this morning we have to pay 10% of prescription charge? whether that is true or not, but know we certainly have to pay something.

DeeD
02-07-2012, 17:28
Think it came into force on 1st July not sure but someone told me this morning we have to pay 10% of prescription charge? whether that is true or not, but know we certainly have to pay something.

Perhaps the first member to collect a prescription could give us some idea of what they had to pay, depending on the number of items on the prescription.

jeste747
02-07-2012, 17:31
I cant seem to find out much about this, for example, will we have to pay monthly through the bank or when we collect our prescriptions at the Pharmacy.

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Thats a good idea :)


Perhaps the first member to collect a prescription could give us some idea of what they had to pay, depending on the number of items on the prescription.

slodgedad
02-07-2012, 18:47
Perhaps the first member to collect a prescription could give us some idea of what they had to pay, depending on the number of items on the prescription.

Social prescriptions here work completely differently from the UK.

There is no fixed charge per item but a discount on the cost of the drug. (Normally you pay 40%)
which works out a lot cheaper than the UK for the majority of things.

If, however, as I found out after my wife's illness, one of the drugs was 58 euros a week, 40% can be quite expensive

Pets@Home
02-07-2012, 22:55
Hi found out all information for you today.
Red prescriptions / have to pay 10% across the board.
Green prescriptions / have to pay 40-50% across the board.
You can now only have one box per prescription.

AS AT TODAY 1ST JULY ........ THIS IS OFFICAL GUYS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

timmylish
02-07-2012, 23:03
Hi found out all information for you today.
Red prescriptions / have to pay 10% across the board.
Green prescriptions / have to pay 40-50% across the board.
You can now only have one box per prescription.

AS AT TODAY 1ST JULY ........ THIS IS OFFICAL GUYS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can you clarify the "one box" rule please. I normally get up to 4 different medicines each month but, and here is the but, one prescription requires me to get 8 bottles of morphine and another requires me to get 2 boxes of morphine. So, reading your posting literally I will need to visit the doc for a renewal of the liquid every 3 to 4 days and for the tablets every 15 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot see this being the case as this will drive the whole medical system to a stop?

primrose
02-07-2012, 23:04
Hi found out all information for you today.
Red prescriptions / have to pay 10% across the board.
Green prescriptions / have to pay 40-50% across the board.
You can now only have one box per prescription.

AS AT TODAY 1ST JULY ........ THIS IS OFFICAL GUYS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can you please explain the difference between a Red prescription and a Green prescription, and who decides which colour you get.

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Can you clarify the "one box" rule please. I normally get up to 4 different medicines each month but, and here is the but, one prescription requires me to get 8 bottles of morphine and another requires me to get 2 boxes of morphine. So, reading your posting literally I will need to visit the doc for a renewal of the liquid every 3 to 4 days and for the tablets every 15 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot see this being the case as this will drive the whole medical system to a stop?

My Chemist has been doing this for a few months and I am the same with OH's Tablets he has 9 different medicines and they all last for different lengths of time so I have to keep going back to Chemist for his medication.

slodgedad
02-07-2012, 23:14
Can you clarify the "one box" rule please. I normally get up to 4 different medicines each month but, and here is the but, one prescription requires me to get 8 bottles of morphine and another requires me to get 2 boxes of morphine. So, reading your posting literally I will need to visit the doc for a renewal of the liquid every 3 to 4 days and for the tablets every 15 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot see this being the case as this will drive the whole medical system to a stop?

Carol's prescriptions have a 3 month time lapse but as soon as she uses it she has 10 days to complete-

In other words, no matter how much is on the prescription you only have 10 days to get everything after the first item is bought.

timmylish
02-07-2012, 23:19
Carol's prescriptions have a 3 month time lapse but as soon as she uses it she has 10 days to complete-

In other words, no matter how much is on the prescription you only have 10 days to get everything after the first item is bought.
Slodgie. I understand that but this means the doctor will require to print out an Amazon Tree Forest and I,ll need a carrier bag for all the prescription. Unfortunately, for some reason (well I do its a class 2 drug), our doc will only prescribe month by month as opposed to a three month supply which would, not only for me but the whole Medical Centre, be much more convenient!

primrose
02-07-2012, 23:26
Carol's prescriptions have a 3 month time lapse but as soon as she uses it she has 10 days to complete-

In other words, no matter how much is on the prescription you only have 10 days to get everything after the first item is bought.

I really don't know what I am doing with these prescriptions as what you have just said is the opposite to what the Chemist at Arona Gran says.We get a prescription for 3 months and have to keep going back when the tablets run out.Last week OH needed anti -biotics that the Dr game him a prescription for as you can only get them on prescription but had to pay full price for them as they weren't on the list of medicines you could get on prescription.

slodgedad
02-07-2012, 23:30
I really don't know what I am doing with these prescriptions as what you have just said is the opposite to what the Chemist at Arona Gran says.We get a prescription for 3 months and have to keep going back when the tablets run out.Last week OH needed anti -biotics that the Dr game him a prescription for as you can only get them on prescription but had to pay full price for them as they weren't on the list of medicines you could get on prescription.

I don't understand that...I thought that all medicines prescribed on a social prescription were subject to the same rules.

primrose
02-07-2012, 23:33
I don't understand that...I thought that all medicines prescribed on a social prescription were subject to the same rules.

My OH gets a 3 months prescription Some last for 30 days some for 28, 15, and 14 days and I have to keep going back to Chemist when they run out till the prescription expires.

slodgedad
02-07-2012, 23:38
I'm gonna have to change chemists then.

In Chafiras the chemist will only honour the prescription for 10 days after the first use, regardless of the expiry date.

Pets@Home
02-07-2012, 23:52
Right I will now try and answer all the above questions now for you.

RED PRESCRIPTIONS are for pensioners and people who are on expensive life saving drugs.
now cost 10@ of price before was free.

GREEN PRESCRIPTIONS are for everyone else.
costs between 40-50% of price, same as before.

THE 3 MONTH RULE you can no longer obtain all your drugs in one go, you have to go
monthly to cash in the prescription.

THE ONE ITEM PER PRESCRIPTION RULE you can no longer obtain multiple boxes on one prescription. The doctor has to write out a prescription per box. Before 2 boxes were the max.
It may not apply to liquid medicines or ampules I dont know the answer to that one.

HOPE THIS ALL HELPS

STARTS TODAY 1ST JULY 2012.
THE 3 MONTH PRESCRIPTIONS STARTED ABOUT 6 MONTHS AGO .....

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Right I will now try and answer all the above questions now for you.

RED PRESCRIPTIONS are for pensioners and people who are on expensive life saving drugs.
now cost 10% of price, before was free.

GREEN PRESCRIPTIONS are for everyone else.
costs between 40-50% of price, same as before.

THE 3 MONTH RULE you can no longer obtain all your drugs in one go, you have to go
monthly to cash in the prescription, on a monthly basis.

THE ONE ITEM PER PRESCRIPTION RULE you can no longer obtain multiple boxes on one prescription. The doctor has to write out a prescription per box. Before 2 boxes were the max.
It may not apply to liquid medicines or ampules I dont know the answer to that one.

HOPE THIS ALL HELPS

STARTS TODAY 1ST JULY 2012.
THE 3 MONTH PRESCRIPTIONS STARTED ABOUT 6 MONTHS AGO .....

Slodgedad can u make this into a sticky thread as I thinks its very important!!!!!!

slodgedad
03-07-2012, 00:08
Slodgedad can u make this into a sticky thread as I thinks its very important!!!!!!

Sorted.............

primrose
03-07-2012, 00:10
Thanks Pets@Home,this may sound a silly question but are the red and green prescriptions actually red and green, as the three month one I have got for OH is just printed on an A4 sheet of white paper and still has two and a half months left,so just wondering if this is any good now or if he will need a new one.Why can't a months tablets be for a month and when they are finished go and get the next month it would be so much easier.

Megaloo
03-07-2012, 09:01
Thanks Pets@Home,this may sound a silly question but are the red and green prescriptions actually red and green, as the three month one I have got for OH is just printed on an A4 sheet of white paper and still has two and a half months left,so just wondering if this is any good now or if he will need a new one.Why can't a months tablets be for a month and when they are finished go and get the next month it would be so much easier.

I am in the same boat, but when you hand your social card to the chemist they know what to charge (I think) because your Social card has pensionista on it, so hoping we will still get prescription and be charged the 10%
I have also only been able to get one month at a time on my 3 monthly A4 sheet. The special one my OH gets is written on the red form one for each month.

cainaries
03-07-2012, 20:00
I have five items on my 3 month prescription and I am a pensioner and the prescription is an A4 print out (but used to be red). Today I needed one set of pills and was hoping for another lot of something else so went to test this out for you all. I got the pills which had run out but the computer said 'no' to the second lot.

Watch carefully. I had to pay 10%. The chemist gave me a 'ticket' and told me to keep it because there is a limit as to much you have to pay each month. I don't know how much that is and it may vary according to your circumstances. The important thing is to keep all your tickets.

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I know this is a thread about advice on pensioners paying their 10% as started on 1st July. However, for a while now I have only collected the prescriptions I need whereas under the previous system I got everything on the script regardless of whether or not I had finished the previous inhaler/tablets etc. Since the system changed I always point to the items I want and say I don't need the others. OH and I are wondering if there has been vast oversubscribing going on (juist slightly encouraged by the drugs companies' reps) which will become more obvious as pensioners start doing what we're doing and only asking for the medicines we take and find beneficial rather than all the ones the doctors prescribe?

I always feel embarrassed when this happens. I have posted and 2 kind souls have thanked me. Then I write a NEW post with a different slant and it gets merged and it looks as though the people who thanked me agree with what I posted a bit later. Mods ... any thoughts on that?

craftycarder
03-07-2012, 21:09
My husband (pensioner) collected his prescription this afternoon and charged 3 cents !!!

cainaries
03-07-2012, 22:28
My husband (pensioner) collected his prescription this afternoon and charged 3 cents !!!

So the medicine costs 30 cents! I hope it does him a pςwer of good. I wonder what it costs to collect 3 cents!

Pets@Home
03-07-2012, 23:10
Yes most drugs are on the A4 sheet of paper, but the "life saving expensive drugs" still have to have
that special stamp on from SANTA CRUZ, so Primose, actually red and actually green in colour .....

timmylish
03-07-2012, 23:47
To clarify, I think, the red one is for a "pensionista" of any kind whereas the green one is for everyone else. I am talking about "drugs" not those other day to day type of medicines which are dealt with by way of the Receta Electronica. Now since I,ve had constant, long running problems since our move from Cabo Vlanco to San Isidro,s Medical Centres I know a bit about the system running prior to 1st July. You must make a distinction when referring to medications nowadays. Drugs ARE Drugs. The rest are medications. So the Receta Electronica lists all the current drugs and medicines which are being prescribed and the system runs on both the doctor,s computer and also the Farmacia,s computers and are designed to ensure that only those medicines and drugs currently prescribed can be obtained by the patient and at the levels which the patients will require. The effect of this has been a dramatic reduction in medicines being handed out by Farmacias under the Social scheme, ie over supplying unnecessarily at the cost to the tax payer and the benefit to Farmacias and drug companies. I will be testing the effect of the latest changes when I go to my doctors on Friday for my normal (previous normal) monthly prescriptions! I shall report!

cainaries
04-07-2012, 10:48
I do hope the authorities are going to compare the total cost to the taxpayer before and after they introduced the charges.

The next point of interest to me will be for someone to report what happens when they reach their limit for the month. The impression I got from the farmacia was that it would be up to me to reclaim the money by submitting all the tickets. Obviously would be better for us if the last drugs of the month were issued free if the limit had already been reached but I can see from their point of view that it would be better to make people claim because not everyone will bother if, just for example, the amount is €1.

Another question which I asked a couple of months ago and got shouted at by Satellite. What happens when the costs are charged back to the UK?. If a drug costs €10 and I've paid €1, will the charge by €10 or €9 and do you suppose the UK Government knows this is going on?!?

jeste747
04-07-2012, 12:44
Interesting point when I believe the UK Government (taxpayers money) pays over £3500 per Pensioner per annum for our healthcare, whether we use it on not, surely the UK should get a refund.

Goldenmaniac
04-07-2012, 14:56
I do hope the authorities are going to compare the total cost to the taxpayer before and after they introduced the charges.

The next point of interest to me will be for someone to report what happens when they reach their limit for the month. The impression I got from the farmacia was that it would be up to me to reclaim the money by submitting all the tickets. Obviously would be better for us if the last drugs of the month were issued free if the limit had already been reached but I can see from their point of view that it would be better to make people claim because not everyone will bother if, just for example, the amount is €1.

Another question which I asked a couple of months ago and got shouted at by Satellite. What happens when the costs are charged back to the UK?. If a drug costs €10 and I've paid €1, will the charge by €10 or €9 and do you suppose the UK Government knows this is going on?!?

Spain gets an amount per capita for each officially registered UK Pensioner - just like a practice in the UK would get a fixed amount per capita. As far as I am aware there is no "settling up" of individual accounts.

However I believe that if the patient is a visitor using a European Health Card there is a specific reckoning up between member states for the individual service provided.

bonitatime
04-07-2012, 19:24
Pensioners can pay no more than 9 or 18 euros and if they do they can have the difference repaid
As it has no effect for me I didn't pay much attention to how this is all going to work but as there is interest I will now try to pay attention and actually read the next thing I find on this rather than just skim it.


As for the money being paid for pensioners and tourists, Spain is owed millions going back about 5 years which seems to be how long it takes to get paid on this sort of bills.

cainaries
04-07-2012, 22:39
Pensioners can pay no more than 9 or 18 euros and if they do they can have the difference repaid
As it has no effect for me I didn't pay much attention to how this is all going to work but as there is interest I will now try to pay attention and actually read the next thing I find on this rather than just skim it.


As for the money being paid for pensioners and tourists, Spain is owed millions going back about 5 years which seems to be how long it takes to get paid on this sort of bills.

I'm not for a moment saying you're wrong ... but I can't help thinking of Mandy Rice-Davies when I see a remark like that ... 'well, they would say that, wouldn't they?'.

timmylish
05-07-2012, 01:39
I'm not for a moment saying you're wrong ... but I can't help thinking of Mandy Rice-Davies when I see a remark like that ... 'well, they would say that, wouldn't they?'.

Just about sprayed the keyboard with a mouthful of tea!!!!!! Mandy Rice-Davies. Good heavens above. I was soon to be working in a Secretary of States Whitehall Office when her involvement with (I think I,m correct could Google but I,ll not) a Naval Attache and breaches of the Official Secrets Act came out into the public domain.

Agrrrr. Google-While giving evidence at the trial of Stephen Ward, charged with living off the immoral earnings of Keeler and Rice-Davies, the latter made a famous riposte. When the prosecuting counsel pointed out that Lord Astor denied an affair or having even met her, she replied, "Well, he would, wouldn't he?" (often misquoted as "Well he would say that, wouldn't he?").[5] By 1979, this phrase had entered the third edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.

cainaries
05-07-2012, 20:36
Just about sprayed the keyboard with a mouthful of tea!!!!!! Mandy Rice-Davies. Good heavens above. I was soon to be working in a Secretary of States Whitehall Office when her involvement with (I think I,m correct could Google but I,ll not) a Naval Attache and breaches of the Official Secrets Act came out into the public domain.

Agrrrr. Google-While giving evidence at the trial of Stephen Ward, charged with living off the immoral earnings of Keeler and Rice-Davies, the latter made a famous riposte. When the prosecuting counsel pointed out that Lord Astor denied an affair or having even met her, she replied, "Well, he would, wouldn't he?" (often misquoted as "Well he would say that, wouldn't he?").[5] By 1979, this phrase had entered the third edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.

thanks, Timmylish, and I apologise for misquoting her. I know Christine Keeler was 'involved with' John Profumo and a Russian naval attache at the same time but I can't remember exactly what naughtiness Mandy got up to. but have always loved the quote even though it turns out I didn't have it right.

Interestingly ... and to move slightly to on topic ... I was talking to someone today who had gone to the doctor using her EHIC and got a prescription for an eye infection and was charged 10% of the cost of the anti-biotics on her EHIC. Yes, she is a pensioner.

primrose
05-07-2012, 20:47
Do Spanish pensioners get free medication in the UK if they are residents and if they do will they now have to pay 10% of the cost?

Megaloo
05-07-2012, 22:25
A friend of mine went to the chemist today to pick up a prescription costing 380 Euros thinking he would have to pay 38 Euros, he was only charged 4 Euros and was told that is max they can charge for any one item.

cainaries
06-07-2012, 22:39
Went to the GP today (sorry my health problems are sooo boring!) and got a totally new 3 month script which includes ALL the prices so you can calculate how much each prescription is going to cost you at 10% (or whatever percentage you have to pay). Was quite startled to see how much/little some items are.

Meantimes, a Spanish friend tells me (not a pensioner, this is for everyone else) that the pharmacies KNOW how much everyone earns ... mas o menos ... because the Hacienda has shared this information with their Department of Health so they can calculate how much you have to pay for your prescriptions. Can you honestly imagine this happening in the UK?

Goldenmaniac
07-07-2012, 10:49
Went to the GP today (sorry my health problems are sooo boring!) and got a totally new 3 month script which includes ALL the prices so you can calculate how much each prescription is going to cost you at 10% (or whatever percentage you have to pay). Was quite startled to see how much/little some items are.

Meantimes, a Spanish friend tells me (not a pensioner, this is for everyone else) that the pharmacies KNOW how much everyone earns ... mas o menos ... because the Hacienda has shared this information with their Department of Health so they can calculate how much you have to pay for your prescriptions. Can you honestly imagine this happening in the UK?

Yes they will know from the information provided in the Renta (annual tax return) but if you are a UK pensioner residing here legally, but you do not do a declaration because you are under the threshold for example and have no liability to do so, then the tax office computer will not have a record of your income level because it comes solely from the Uk (in this example), so you will default to the full co-payment.

cainaries
07-07-2012, 12:34
Thanks, goldenmaniac. Tried to send you a 'thanks' but I couldn't.

timmylish
08-07-2012, 02:36
I am not at all sure that most of you will be interested in my problems with the whole, new scheme, as from 1st July. As I said I had to go for my monthly appointment to the Medical Centre at San Isidro just to get my prescriptions for both my medicines and drugs. Unfortunately, again, I had to see a stand in doctor as mine was on holiday this time. 11,55 was my time and was seen shortly after this by a very grumpy little female doctor. Printed out my Receta Electronica no problem but when we asked for my prescriptions for the drugs she told us that since I has sufficient until Monday night she was not able to prescribe anew then and that I would need to get the prescriptions on Monday for the drugs to be taken from Tuesday onwards. WHAT. We make an appointment every 4 weeks on a Friday so that the prescription for these drugs can go to the Farmacia and delivered the next full working day, Monday, in time for me to tale these starting on the Tuesday (and hoping that no mistakes occur which has happened in the past). This is also the only day Mrs.T. can come with me and that this has been the case for 4 years now. After lengthy arguement, OK what time shall I come on my own on Monday to get the prescriptions. Doctor tells us that no appointments for her or any other doctor would be available until Thursday. At this point my blood pressure is going thru the roof (great for someone with hypertension and a previous stroke) and Mrs. T. is crying at the insensitivity of this doctor. She then tells us that I shall just have to survive without these drugs for a minimum of 3 days at which point I take out letter from the specialist in Candelaria stating clearly that in the event of me missing a 12 hour intake of these drugs I have to admit myself to an A and E for treatment! NO reaction and she again maintains that she is not allowed to make out the prescriptions to-day. She then vasically told us to leave notwithstanding Mrs. T. screaming that we are going to lodge a Reclamacion against her and see another doctor. Go to reception and face the same problem after they speak to the doctor. Cannot give us an emergency consultation to-day because my doctor (stand in) has seen me. We have now been in the Centro Salud for nearly 2 hours so as the only recourse we go to our normal Farmacia and the owner immediately telephones the doctor herself and basically tells her so is totally in the wrong and that prescriptions got to-day would only have the drugs to San Isidro on Monday afternoon, in time for me to take them from Tuesday am. She also confirmed what we had told her that this procedure had been in place for the time since our move to San Isidro 18 months ago and that her computer definitely shows my drugs run out on Monday evening. Whilst this is going on an assistant telephones her own doctor at my surgery who immediately goes in to see this stand in doctor and eventually we are told to go back and the prescriptions would be ready. So we do as we are told and the Farmacia closes down for the afternoon. We arrive at the Centre to be handed the prescriptions which are wrong in respect of one of the drugs. Again, point blamk refysal to do anything about this and just get on with life! Shortly after we go back to the Farmacia and await its opening with new staff! They take one look at these prescriptions and point out 4 different errors which prevent them processing the things. They telephone the Centre and speak to a young doctor who asks us to go back down, which we do and of course have to await the clearing up of all of her patients but eventually we get the said prescriptions and go back to the Farmacia and lodge them for processing! It is now 19.45, nearly 8 hours after we first went to the Centro Salud!!!!!!!!!!!! Becaus eof all the muckin' around, because of the confusion, I am charged too much for the medicines which we did get. I can tell you that one medicine (not a drug) cost 130 Euros itself so, at the moment and before I go for the drugs and pay for these, we have spent over 30 Euros. Frankly the money is irrelevant against what took place on Friday. We have written out a Reclamacion, in English, which we now have to get translated. Both of us speak Spanish, Mrs. t. much better level but, the written and for technecal matters well, that,s a different story. Will have to sort this out to-morrow somehow. We have arranged to see the Director of Centro Salud for Granadilla on Monday at 08.00 to bitterly complain and seek an apology of some type(?)
So, as you can see, some doctors are not au fait with current procedures for issuing prescriptions. The owner of the Farmacia (largest in San Isidro) told Mrs. T. that every day they face one problem after another with people not understanding the new procedures and with some doctors being totally out of touch with what is needed now. So, hopefull, my drugs will be ready on Monday afternoon (that is the first 10 days and repeated every 10 days this month until my own doctor comes baxk from holiday), I,ll pay for them without thinking about that and before that see the Director on Monday morning. I,m sorry for the length of this but it does need explaining in full to enable you understand what happened and to warn you all of the necessity to take care when getting your prescriptions. I shall continue to post anything of relevance on monetary matters for pensioners prescriptions!

cainaries
08-07-2012, 10:12
timmylish I do hope you blood pressure is back to normal! We have also met that kind of doctor. We filled in a complaint form in Spanish with help from a 'health professional' who is a personal friend so hope you have someone similar to call on. This was for a `red`has-to-go-to-Tenerife prescription for OH's diabetes which got lost at the Health Centre which they refused point blank to do anything about at all even though they acknowledged they had lost it.

Seems sometimes the doctors aren't allowed to over-ride the computer! Talk about 'the computer says no'!

macdonald5
08-07-2012, 19:05
Oh Timmylish,don't know how bad your and Mrs T's health issues are but can see that all this faffing about is not good for either of you
Thought NHS in Scotland had problems but maybe Tenerife can beat hands down
Hope sense prevails soon , kind regards to you both

john b
07-08-2012, 19:55
Slightly off topic: we pay Seguridad Social as self employed, but in two years we become of UK state pension age. Do we have to do anything to get our status with the Canarian health system changed to reflect this, or does it happen automatically?

cainaries
07-08-2012, 20:05
Slightly off topic: we pay Seguridad Social as self employed, but in two years we become of UK state pension age. Do we have to do anything to get our status with the Canarian health system changed to reflect this, or does it happen automatically?

I started to write you a great long reply but, on reflection, pretty tricky to tell what the situation will be like two years down the road .... in either country!

john b
07-08-2012, 21:52
I understand, but perhaps you could tell me how it operates at present?

cainaries
07-08-2012, 21:58
I could try! Are you going to claim a UK Pension? Have you contacted the UK Department of Work and Pensions and asked for a quote on what your pension will be? (this is quite a good idea because it alerts to them to your very existence). They don't pay the pension automatically, you do have to write and claim it. When you contact them, explain you are permanently resident in Tenerife (if this is what you are) and that you want to transfer your Health Care Rights to Spain. When the Department of Work and Pensions write to you to start the process of paying you your pensions (which country, which bank account, etc. etc.) they will also send you the forms to start the process of registering as a UK Pensioner in the Spanish Health Service.

I have no idea, but you should investigate, how your contributions here will be taken into account. The UK Government website is quite helpful about this. I would contact goldenmaniac and ask her for the relevant links. (Sorry, goldenmaniac, I often do this to you),

john b
07-08-2012, 23:09
Thank you for your reply. For the first 30 months of living here, we received health care paid for by DWP under form E106 (now S1) and we have paid SS and tax since as self employed, so remain in the system. I'll contact DWP again in about 18 months to kick of the process of maintaining our cover.

Goldenmaniac
08-08-2012, 02:24
Slightly off topic: we pay Seguridad Social as self employed, but in two years we become of UK state pension age. Do we have to do anything to get our status with the Canarian health system changed to reflect this, or does it happen automatically?

It doesn't happen automatically unless you take you Spanish pension at the same time which in turn depends on whether you cease being self employed or not, be a bit more specific about ages etc as rules have all changed recently - pm if you don't what info in open forum.

Just seen your other post - its likely that both your UK and Spanish retirement age will have changed by a few months in light of recent changes in both countries - let me know your dates of birth.

john b
08-08-2012, 15:21
Hi Goldenmaniac, thank you, I've sent you a PM.

Snowdrop
08-08-2012, 18:30
I am a 63 year old pensionista, I am a spanish resident and I rent an apartment. I receive a basic state pension from the UK, along with a tiny private pension. I also have a residents bank account where the money from the UK is paid into every two months. This is the first tax year that I have not had to pay any tax to the UK because of the increase in tax allowance from April 2012. I have never earnt any money in Spain so consequently I have had no dealings with the Hacienda. I had a kidney transplant here in Santa Cruz 6 years ago and receive a long list of medication, 3 of the items need a visado from the Salud in Santa Cruz before they can be supplied from the Farmacia. I was told to keep all my receipts from the Farmacia since the 1st of July and at the end of July the total sum is over 20€. How do I now go about claiming this money back?

Goldenmaniac
08-08-2012, 20:38
Dependant on a lot of individual factors - If you are resident here you should be doing tax returns here - you will most likely be exempt as you are in the UK but it is useful to submit nil returns each year for exactly the reason that is being highlighted by your query - if they have no record of your income level you are assumed to liable to pay the highest contribution level - there is a question and answer sheet here if you read Spanish http://www2.gobiernodecanarias.org/sanidad/scs/content/555cbf34-c507-11e1-adc8-491cdb90fd3e/PreguntasRespuestasRD16_2012.pdf But as far as reclaim is concerned, to my knowledge no information has yet been forthcoming on that issue. Your pharmacist will be able to tell you when/if that changes. Ultimately you would go to CAISS at Granadilla, but I can see no point in that at the moment until up to date instructions are issued

timmylish
09-08-2012, 01:54
According to my Farmacist, who just happens to be brillient, tells me that after 6 months, ie December of this year, I should appoint at Granadilla, to-gether with all receipts for payment of medicines, and make a claim for re-inbursement. That,s the idea at the moment but as she has said to me time and again,
Aye, but December is a long way off and anything might be introduced by this Government!

karaokeking
02-10-2012, 15:13
What is the situation with pensioners who are on holiday, for getting prescriptions, for long term medication. thanks.