My wife and I are looking to do some extended travel (6-9 months) in the UK / EU and our top questions revolve around getting prescriptions renewed in the EU/UK. How have you solved getting prescriptions while traveling?

Moved to Europe forum.

good question I've never traveled that long. I don't know where you live, but I live in the US and I would ask my doctor to authorize an extra prescription pickup (at home). I suppose the insurance company would have to approve it. nine months is a stretch and they might not do that. I only get 3 month prescriptions anyway, so that would be only two of those if timed right and I think they might do that but I haven't tried it. Not to be blunt, but insurance companies don't really want to pay for a lot of drugs that far into the future for various reasons, including mortality and especially if that extended beyond the end of the insurance contract, that is a real big issue. If it doesn't that's one less thing to worry about. But I am sure my insurance company would not authorize a prescription for 9 months in the future as my insurance contract is an annual renewal (unless it were within the first few months of course). I don't think any insurer would do that as they could be paying for something when you weren't even a bene.

I would suggest you contact your pharmacy insurance company (if you have one) and your doctor and ask them for first advice though. If you don't have a pharmacy insurance company, that probably makes it easier.

I'll be interested in what others have to say.

Very often one would have to visit a GP in the country you are visiting to get a prescription filled. Some meds can be refilled by pharmacists without a doctor's involvement and a few meds that are prescription in the States are OTC in the UK/EU.

But really for most prescription meds you'd need to see a doctor locally

Make sure your list of prescriptions had each drug’s scientific name, not the brand name. We had a bit of a delay in France when I gave the doctor the drug company brand name. I niece print out our prescription lists from our accounts on our doctor’s website and bring them with us on trips..

Twice I've traveled for 6 months & both times have gotten enough of my Rx to last the 6 months. A complication is that it's only available in the US so that's how it needed to be done. But I think it's the least complicated way for anyone.

I have had no problems getting 6 months worth of prescription drugs for my extended travels, but I was certainly asked as to why each time. No other issues (FWIW I am not in the US). But I did not have to try for more than 6 months.

I work for an insurance company in the US (do not know where you are located) but I suggest the following, some of which others have suggested.

1. Call your company. Your plan/policy may have extended vacation coverage, though I doubt 6 months.

2. See if your doctor(s) can request prior approval for an extended supply.

3. If denied, appeal (if you plan/policy allows for denials on prior approval denials).

4. If those don't work, have your doctor(s) write out separate rx's for each of your meds. Also, it is possible the NDC code *might* be helpful too (not sure).

IMPORTANT:
You may need to make sure that your plan/policy has non-emergent or urgent coverage overseas. This is for those GP visits you may need to make to get your rx(s) filled.

Make sure that coverage extends to prescriptions overseas as well (that are not emergent/urgent).

Call your plan/policy for available physicians in the countries you plan on visiting. It is possible you may have to get prior approval for any visits or rx filling anyway overseas, depending on the terms of your benefit plan/policy.

Hope this helps a bit.

This is a situation where not having prescription coverage certainly makes things simpler. Self-payers need no company's approval.

Thanks. I should have said we are in the US system. We are currently on an extended trip in UK trip and managed to get 4 months before we left but thinking of a longer trip and six. One of the meds is a tightly regulated drug and that is a challenge. Our Blue Cross global covers emergency room visits as if they were in-network but any dr visits overseas are out of network. And some of the meds require specialist prescription, so not something an overseas GP is going to prescribe on a simple request.

You could always pay out of pocket, Might be fairly inexpensive if generic. In US Walmart or Costco often cheapest for cash prescriptions.

Yes, what many of us do in any case. Get prescription, as much as you need, leave country, don’t look back.

If your meds are likely to fall under restricted drugs rules in Europe or the UK then you must have a full list of them in an approved declaration. Sleeping pills, ritalin, medicinal cannabis, strong pain killers can fall into this category. Some drugs are OTC in Europe but not in the US and vice versa. Some just aren't available in Europe.
Some declarations are only valid for 3 months.

Check on the legal requirements. You may need to fill in customs forms before you arrive, or risk having them confiscated.

Absolutely make sure your have good health coverage for the trip. You may struggle to find insurance for such a long time, especially if you have some pre existing conditions.

If you cannot get enough for your stay you must get a list of them, with their scientific/generic name and why you need them and ask a local doctor for a prescription (though good luck with that in the UK nowadays).

You are aware of the 90 days in Schengen rule I hope.

We're American, but lived outside of the US for years. During those years, we'd visit our US doctor while on our annual home leave, and get a prescription for our routine meds. We'd then pick up a year's worth of those meds at Costco. We paid for at least one of them out-of-pocket, asking Costco to not even run it through insurance. It wasn't expensive, so not a issue.

We'd then take the prescriptions back to where ever we were living at the time.

If you haven't already done so, I suggest you speak with your doctor to see if he/she can help or has some suggestions on how to make this work.

It is also a good idea not to take the packaging off your medicine (where I live there is a pharmacist's sticker with doctor, patient and pharmacy information and dosages placed on the box(es) at the time of purchase). Also travelling with a letter from your doctor is a good idea. Ideally it would say all the information that a doctor abroad would need, and also help if challenged at the border.

Lavandula

Policies around quantity dispensed vary by insurance company. You can request a "vacation fill" to cover the entire six months, and it may or may not be permitted. Start well enough in advance of travel to find out what quantity/time period is covered so you can come up with alternatives if needed. If denied, as travel nerd points out, you can always try to appeal the denial. It may require calls to the customer service phone line to explain your situation and may take a bit of time. If denied, ask about whether your out of pocket Rx expenditures in Europe are eligible for reimbursement.

Absolutely bring a list of prescribed and OTC medications including generic/chemical name, dosage and administration instructions, and reason for taking. Best to have this on letter head from your provider. Have multiple copies.

As experienced travelers you are likely aware but worth mentioning - never put your medications in a checked bag, always carry them on board with you. Even if you have liquid medications that exceed to TSA 3 oz limit, if it is a prescription med it is exempt.

On the brighter side, if you do wind up paying out of pocket in the EU you may be surprised how much cheaper most meds are there than in the US.

Mail. What is happening with your mail? Is it possible to have your meds sent to you by mail to a US address (friend, child, etc) and they forward them onto you?

if you are in europe now, check with pharmacy/MD at that end.

I was thinking the same thing... have somebody mail them to you, or fedex, or whatever....

Electronic prescription

Not applicable to the OP -since he's not an EU resident.

Interesting info though for EU residents travelling within the EU: since 2019, in the context of the Cross-Border Healthcare Directive from the EU Parliament, the electronic prescription has gradually been adopted by a number of member states and now one can get one's prescriptions in some other countries (health.ec.europa(dot)eu/ehealth-digital-health-and-care/electronic-cross-border-health-services_en) While this is yet being rolled out and the availability is rather limited, its total implementation is planned to be finished by 2027. In case of visiting Catalonia: web.gencat(dot)cat/ca/actualitat/detall/Recepta-europea-a-Catalunya

PS: Apologies for the links, simply change "(dot)" for a "." It seems Fodor's doesn't allow posting links to new members

The OP mentioned one of the meds is tightly regulated so forwarding through the mail might not be allowed - best to check.