Hope this hasn't been covered before

If we move to Bulgaria and are under the retirement age ie.not drawing a state pension (we are getting private pensions now though) is it best to stay registered with a GP in the UK for medication etc?

I am currently having 3 monthly blood tests to monitor my Thyroid and will sooner or later have to have Thyroxine. Is this the sort of thing that a Bulgarian gp can treat foc or will I have to pay as a private patient?

Any advice for people under state retire,ent age would be great, thanks

Judy

this is such a grey area and no easy answer. if you move abroad, you are no longer entitled to the uk nhs service, unless its a holiday home. temporary. many many people keep a uk address so that they can continue with the nhs, but if you are permanent in bulgaria you are breaking the law and could get found out. i personally have found medication expensive and many drugs are not available through their health system, such as nexium which is not available under their system and cost 1 lev per tablet, the one available under their nhs system is orproxmoral is only 8 lev for 40 tablets. but you cant have these unless you are on e121 or retired. grey area indeed. private insurance is worth looking into i think for people under retirement age, theres not much for those over retirement age from what i have looked at. and no matter how many questions you ask you dont get a right answer. even asked the uk and still did not understand.

Hi Judybaby,
you can actually buy into the Bulgarian health system when you are over here. I'm not sure exactly how much it is per month but have been told it's under 20 leva.
I am at the moment trying to find out from NHS newcastle the rules etc if you are staying in BG will let you know how I get on.

Thanks Jenny, that sounds like a good idea. Please keep me posted.

Thank you Jenny very useful information

Jenny

Any more info regarding this please?

Judy

The rules from the NHS are straight forward. If you are out of the UK for more than 3 months at a time you are no longer covered by the NHS.

Sometimes it is best to keep a UK address and say nowt

We were honest and no longer get the NHS service (not totally true someone shopped us). But we still pay tax and get b****r all for our money :Headbang:Joining the BG health service is not much of a problem. Finding an English speaking Doctor is. Find a Doctor first then he/she will guide you how to do the rest.

You can get most of the medication as in the UK but beware UK brands are rather expensive.

Judybaby
does this help you


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Thanks for the advice and link.

Although these were helpful I was really asking about the earlier post relating to buying in to the Bulgarian NHS.

Any info is good to have though.

Judy

I hope this helps??????????

Bulgaria's national health system is administered by the National Health Service. It has offices in each regional centre of the country.

"
If you wish to take up long-term residency in Bulgaria it is likely that you will need to register with the health system in order to receive medical services, unless you have taken up private medical insurance"
.

If you have an employment contract:

* Your employer will be obliged to submit your documents to the National Social Service and, through them, to the National Health Service. The health cover installments will then be set and paid every month by your employer.

If you are the owner of a company:

* The health insurance installments will be arranged by your accountant on a monthly basis as part of all your compulsory social payments.

If you are not working:

* You will need to submit your documents and the documents for family members directly to the regional office of the National Health Service.

Step 1

The first step will be to visit the regional office of National Revenue Agency where you will receive information about the amount you need to pay (currently 10.40 Bulgarian Levs per month) and bank details of the account where you will have to transfer the health payments in order to join the National Health Service and maintain your membership.

You will have to pay for some time before you can register with a doctor, although you do have the option of making a back-payment which will give you immediate access to the health system.

Step 2

You pay the amount, as instructed, from any bank, through a bank transfer. The payment document should contain your personal number, which is given to you, together with your residency card. It is called 'Personal Number of a Foreigner' (or 'Lichen Nomer na Chuzdenets').

Step 3

Once the necessary payments have been made you can visit the regional office of the National Health Service with your identification documents. (On some occasions, it may be a good idea to take the payment slips with you detailing the installments made.)

At the regional office you will fill in a form in order to choose a general practitioner. It would be good to have met the doctor and gained his/her agreement prior to this as some doctors have too many patients and would not want to register new ones.

If you are a citizen of the EU and have retired, you will need to bring your official documents with you as you are entitled to join the national health system free of charge.

Children are insured as dependent on their parents, and you will have to inform the National Revenue Agency and NHS of your children during your initial visit.

Step 4

The forth step is to visit your GP with the documents from the NHS who will register you on their list and prepare your patient file. After completing the above procedure, you will be able to use the same medical services as Bulgarian citizens.

Medical assistance


If you experience health problems you will have to visit your GP. He/she will examine you and prescribe treatment. If your condition requires it, then your GP will send you for medical tests or to a specialist for further examination. You will be required to pay a 'consumer fee' for the visit (currently 2.20 Bulgarian Levs).

If you are sent to a specialist, you will have to visit him/her within 30 days and present the document given to you by your GP. The same 'consumer fee' will be charged by the specialist doctor.

If you wish to visit a specialist doctor without visiting your GP, you will have to pay the full price of the examination. Some specialists only have a private practice.

Hospital treatment

If your condition requires hospital treatment, you will be given the necessary documents by your GP. There is a small daily charge payable in the state hospitals but all medical tests and medicines should be free.

In Bulgaria, most medicines are paid for by the patient but if you have a chronic disease it is likely you to be entitled to free or partly paid medicines. Prescriptions for such medicines are given by the GP.

Emergency medical care

If you need emergency medical care, you have to telephone 112, or visit an emergency centre at the nearest hospital. Even if you are not registered with the National Health System, you are entitled to free emergency care if you possess an EU health card from the country of your permanent residence.

For more information on Bulgaria's National Health Service, visit [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] (the Bulgarian NHS website).

Thank you that is most helpful.

Judy