Medication charges dublin

adm

Hi,
I have been going to a clinic for years as a result of long term depression. I have been fairly stable over the last couple of years so have been told I will now be recieving my prescriptions off my GP.

I have not had to pay for the medication thus far (not entirely sure why but I've seen in other threads that this is the case in some health borads).
So my question is - am I likely to be now chanrged for this medication since my GP will be prescribing it?

Any info would be helpful as I forgot to ask the psychiatrist.

P.S.
I'm actually not that great but the heavy turnover of doctors in the clinic meant that I actually just gave up trying to talk to them and just ended up saying I was fine to get my prescription. Not anyones fault - just the way things go.

Odysseus

I moved this from Psych as I think it belong here, maybe with the suggestion of the OP starting a new post in LTI about seeking therapy. My first Mod move lads and ladies of course so I hope its correct.

Kurtosis

adm wrote: »

Hi,
I have been going to a clinic for years as a result of long term depression. I have been fairly stable over the last couple of years so have been told I will now be recieving my prescriptions off my GP.

I have not had to pay for the medication thus far (not entirely sure why but I've seen in other threads that this is the case in some health borads).
So my question is - am I likely to be now chanrged for this medication since my GP will be prescribing it?

Any info would be helpful as I forgot to ask the psychiatrist.

P.S.
I'm actually not that great but the heavy turnover of doctors in the clinic meant that I actually just gave up trying to talk to them and just ended up saying I was fine to get my prescription. Not anyones fault - just the way things go.

A scheme is in place that prescriptions issued from some clinics for medicines to treat depression, as well as other illnesses, are dispensed free of charge (ignoring the issue of the new 50c levy...). If you are not going to be attending this clinic any longer, a prescription issued by your GP will have to be paid for. If you have a medical card or are eligible for one (you can get more information on www.medicalcard.ie), then your GP can prescribe your medicines on a medical card prescription and you will not have to pay for it (apart from a 50c per item levy).

With regard to the quick turnover of doctors at your clinic, attending your GP should give you the chance to discuss any issues or problems you are encountering with the same doctor on a regular basis, so try and take advantage of this opportunity.

RobFowl

penguin88 wrote: »

A scheme is in place that prescriptions issued from some clinics for medicines to treat depression, as well as other illnesses, are dispensed free of charge

That scheme was discontinued 4-6 weeks ago.
The letter they now give is a list of advised medications. It has "this is not a prescription" embossed right at the top so will have to be transcribed onto wither a private prescription by the GP or if you have a medical card onto a GMS script.
Basically now if you have a medical card you pay 50c per item and if not then the full cost up to the DPS limit of €120.

adm

RobFowl wrote: »

That scheme was discontinued 4-6 weeks ago.

Many thanks. At least I can rely on boards to get this info . Couldn't find anything on official sites (do you have a link perhaps?).

RobFowl wrote: »

Basically now if you have a medical card you pay 50c per item and if not then the full cost up to the DPS limit of €120.

Great another 120 per month. I'm very thankful for having got them free up until now but another 120 each month is going to hurt.

adm

My last post was before todays news. Who the hell knows what drugs will cost now.....

Kurtosis

RobFowl wrote: »

That scheme was discontinued 4-6 weeks ago.
The letter they now give is a list of advised medications. It has "this is not a prescription" embossed right at the top so will have to be transcribed onto wither a private prescription by the GP or if you have a medical card onto a GMS script.
Basically now if you have a medical card you pay 50c per item and if not then the full cost up to the DPS limit of €120.

I know arrangements have changed with some areas/clinics, but for other areas the scheme is still operating as before (except that it carries the 50 cent charge now).

adm, the medication you're on might not necessarily reach the €120 limit for a month's supply. To save giving yourself a shock when your prescription is due next, I'm sure you could phone or call into your pharmacy before then to find out what price it would be.

adm

Hopefully penguin88. I'm hoping there will be cheaper generic versions I can buy.

Edit:
Thankfully I was able to get generics so the monthly total is 55 euro - less than I had imagined.
The pharmacist said for the time being the psych scheme is still in place if you get a prescription
from a clinic rather than GP.