Renewing Prescriptions while taking a LONG sabbatical
 

Hello,
My boyfriend and I are taking a 15 month sabbatical starting May 2006. We will quit our professional jobs to do this. Subsequently, we will not have medical issurance. My boyfriend takes prescription drugs and can only take a few months worth of meds with him because the doctor will not prescribe the drugs for the whole time we are gone. Is it possible to go to an EU doctor with medical history to get a new prescription? Does travel insurance cover monthly doctor visits to get new prescriptions? How do people get meds with no US medical insurance while taking a long-term sabbatical?

We will not 'stock-up' on meds while in Europe. His doctor will not ween him off the meds either. He just wants to get the right dosage while travelling. Any thoughts, advice?

First of all I would not recommend dropping health insurance while you're on sabbatical. US labor (COBRA) laws normally allow you to maintain the same insurance you had while employed, at your cost. Your employer may not pay for it, but you can pay for it yourself. Expensive, yes, but not as much as paying for a single major medical event.

These days, the cost of medical treatment can be staggering (accident, pregnancy, etc).

Second, have you asked the doctor if he will a # of refills that will cover a longer term? You may only be able to get a few months meds up front, but if you have refills, you can get them from the issuing pharmacy - maybe one of the major us chains has overseas arrangements (Walgreen, Eckerd, etc). Again, you may need to pay out of pocket the full cost, rather than just a deductible.

Check out "single plan" or "family plan" instead of COBRA - it may be less expensive. You may also have a choice of different plans.

Also make sure the plan offers worldwide coverage.

thank you for the advice. I like the idea of the international chains like Walgreens etc. I'll look into that.

As far as his prescriptions, getting more refills will not work. Firstly, the doctor will not do that for more than a month or so at a time. Secondly, the type of prescription he gets always needs tweeking. So, regular doctor visits will be a necessity.

I'll look into getting a single plan that covers overseas doctor visits.

Anything else?

Check some of the expat sites, they often have info on health insurance for people who will be staying long periods of time.
try http://www.healthcareinternational.com is one and I think Amex has a plan for international care.