Hi, I am planning on being an international student in the fall-spring semesters of 2006-2007 and I need to know about the medications available there and the cost or prescription insurance information. I am a renal Transplant patient and need to have medicines available or I will have to find a way to get them.

Thanks!

You will want to tell what country you are visiting.

Transplantation medicine is equally sophisticated in Western Europe to the nited States, so availability of medications will not be an issue. Depending on how often you see your transplant nephrologist, it would be appropriate to get a referral from your own physician/clinic to a transplant nephrologist near the school or university where you will be studying.

I can't even begin to address the issue of payment for your medications.

Best wishes,

Rex

Hello Shantshirt04. I assume that your will be able to obtain medical insurance for the time you are in Europe through the school or the program that is arranging this wonderful experience you have.

I would talk to them first of all.

And I am assuming when you say you will be an international student you do mean in Europe as you posted this on the European Board. But of course that doesn't necessarily mean the western European countries.

Not really answering your question I know but all the international students that I have known going abroad from the US or coming from abroad to the US have medical insurance through the program that worked out their international studies for them. Best wishes on the very exciting venture. You must be so excited!

dear shantshirt04. i work with international students and this is my opinion from previous hospital/doctor experience.

Hopefully your present insurance will cover you in your study country as no NEW insurance policy usually picks up chronic disorder related incidents, which in your case is very important.

so, before you leave see about getting an extension overseas policy from your primary carrier or one of their partners because although other companies for students may not ask any questions.. when you go to use the policy .. you will not be covered if it is a chronic disorder.

Who provides your medical coverage now. If you are a student with insurance through the school, you should contact both the school and the insurer to insure that you will have coverage, and what you will have to do to obtain treatment and medications.

If you are, in the alternative, covered under your parents' policy, you should contact that insurer, as many policies issued through employers (particularly the coverage by HMOs) don't do a very good job of covering you while you are traveling. I know my kids declined the school insurance as they are covered under my policy, but my HMO limits coverage while out of its specified area to $1200 a year, which covers little more than a headache, which you get again when you have to file the claim and provide endless documentation, translated into English. So when my kids do a quarter or semester in Europe, we get travel insurance that covers them, but they do not have preexisting conditions, which will complicate your planning.

You may also run into complications when medications available in Europe are not identical to those you have been taking. Getting them by mail may be both expensive and involve complications with customs. I always take enough of my own medications to last far longer than I will be there, but I don't know if carrying enough for a year would be practical.

In 1995 my brother went to the UK for a semester abroad. He had his first kidney transplant in 1991 and was in very good health, and was at a stage where he only needed to run tests every six months with the transplant/nephrology team. He was able to take six months' worth of his anti-rejection and heart/bp meds with him; he had been able to coordinate that with his prescribing doctor and the pharmacy. While over there, he was never in need of seeing a nephologist, but had been assured by the HMO that it would have been covered in the event. Of course he would have to pay and then be reimbursed for the cost, unless hospitalized. He had to carry his own insurance (rather than being covered by the university's due to his pre-existing condition) for nephology related issues should they have occurred. If he needed to go to the university clinic for a cold or something that would have been covered. We were thankful afterward there was no need!

I don't know how often you need to see your nephologist or what your health is currently, so I can't say much to that if you're in need of seeing them often. But check with your doctor if s/he will prescribe meds for the length of time required, and if the pharmacy would have a problem filling them- it's a start.

Also try to find out the cost in Europe of the meds you need. I've found the prices much lower in France than they were in California. My doctor in France was able to look up my American medications and find the French equivalents. What I pay here, full price, is about the same amount I was paying as a co-payment when I was working in California and had good insurance coverage.

www.logis-de-france.fr will provide you with hotels in the towns of your choice, and they are very reasonable. Using their website, I selected hotels for eighteen nights while driving through France, and I was completely satisfied.

AS regards the UK you could visit the nhs direct web site and search for your requirements or even use the contact us to ask them your question regarding costs etc.