Rund Abdelfatah
By Rund Abdelfatah
ALL residents of Spain will be required to contribute to the cost of medical prescriptions, as of last month.
Anyone making less than €18,000 per year will pay up to 40 per cent of the prescription cost, with a monthly cap at €8.
Those earning more than €18,000 will pay half the cost, with a monthly cap at €18.
While the UK will continue to pay Spain an annual cost to provide healthcare for its pensioners, British expats are not exempt from this tax.
The long-term goal is to integrate this rate of pay information into the SIP card – which enters expats into the healthcare system in Spain.
However, for those who have not declared an annual resident tax, blanket charges will apply.
Non-pensioners with low incomes pay 40 per cent and pensioners pay 10 per cent.
Those providing no income information will have no cap on their monthly contributions.
Compared to U.K. prescription costs, this is still,mostly, a good deal. As long as people make the required registrations, the most they will pay towards their medications is 18 euros per month, (if this report is correct) About the same cost as buying a “prescription passport” in the U.K. Where, if one is liable to pay for their prescriptions, EACH item casts £7.65. Three items per month takes one well over that 18 euro cap for Spain. Registered pensioners still go free, so, if one plays the game, most expats shouldn’t suffer too much. However, the article doesn’t make clear who else, if anyone, is exempt from charges, The sick? The unemployed? The disabled?