Question of the week: What happens if you are travelling to another UE country and you know you will need medicine over there?

That is no longer a problem under the EU directive on crossborder healthcare, becasue as of 25 October 2013 you are able to ask for a cross-border prescription which is intended for use in another EU country: these are designed to help the pharmacist understand the prescription easily, the ingredients of the medicine and their dosage.

Article 11 of the EU Directive on patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare states that the European Commission shall adopt measures enabling a health professional to verify the authenticity of a (medical) prescription and whether the prescription was issued in another Member State by a member of a regulated health profession who is legally entitled to do so, through developing a non-exhaustive list of elements to be included in the prescriptions and which must be clearly identifiable in all prescription formats, including elements to facilitate, if needed, contact between the prescribing party and the dispensing party, in order to contribute to a complete understanding of the treatment, in due respect of data protection.

Measures to facilitate the correct identification of medicinal products or medical devices prescribed in one Member State and dispensed in another, including measures to address patient safety concerns in relation to their substitution in cross-border healthcare, where the legislation of the dispensing Member State permits such substitution. The Commission shall consider, inter alia, using the International Non-proprietary Name and the dosage of medicinal products

Measures to facilitate the comprehensibility of the information to patients concerning the prescription and the instructions included on the use of the product, including an indication of active substance and dosage.

On 20 December 2011, the European Commission formally adopted an implementing Directive laying down the measures to facilitate the recognition of medical prescriptions in another member state. These measures apply to a prescription for a medicinal product or for a medical device issued by a member of a regulated health profession and came into force on 25 October 2013.
The implementing Directive states that medicinal products should be indicated using their common name in order to facilitate the correct identification of products which are marketed under different brand names across the EU, and of products that are not marketed in all EU Member States. The common name shall be either the International Non-proprietary name recommended by the WHO or, if such a name does not exist, the usual common name. Medical devices do not have such common names and therefore the prescriptions should include direct contact details of the prescriber, which enable the dispensing professional to enquire about the device.
In terms of the content of the prescription, Member States shall ensure that prescriptions contain at least the elements set out below.

List of elements to be included in medical prescriptions to use in another EU country:
– Patient indentification: surname(s), first name(s), written in full and DoB
– Authentication of the prescription: issue date
– Identification of the prescribing health professional: surname(s), first name(s), written in full; professional qualification; details for direct contact; work address (including name of relevant Member State); signature (written or digital)
– Identification of the prescribed product: “Common name”, this means the name of the drug; brand name,  ONLY if (a) the prescribed product is a biological medicinal product; or (b) the prescribing health professional deems it medically necessary; in that case the prescription shall concisely state the reasons justifying the use of the brand name; pharmaceutical formulation (tablet, solution, etc); quantity; strength.

The recognition if the cross border prescription is mandatory.

http://ec.europa.eu/health/cross_border_care/policy/index_en.htm is the text of the EU directive, in case the chemist has no idea this is mandatory now.

The law that has been passed to implement the EU directive also contains the regulation about the prescription, and it says very clearly that the acceptance of a prescription from another EU country, if they fulfill the criteria written above, is mandatory. Here is a copy of the law. http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2014/02/08/pdfs/BOE-A-2014-1331.pdf

How would you pay? Y ou will pay 100% and then get it reimbursed when you get here. I would confirm this with my local INSS office before I go, because they must need to have this implemented, and I don’t know at the moment how this is working in the different Autonomous Communities.

Please note: The information provided is based upon our understanding of current legislation. It is not legal advice but is provided freely to enable you to be properly informed. We recommend that if you are considering taking action, you should seek professional advice.