Healthcare

[Forto]

Need a bit of information if anyone can help.
I have read on a UK Gov website that if you move to Spain and are under retirement age and not working, you can pay into the Spanish healthcare system 60€ per person per month, in order to access healthcare . The information on the website was a bit sketchy and had not been updated since the middle of last year. Does anyone know if this system applies in Fuerteventura?
Thanks in advance.

[Deso]

'Convenio Especial' should be available provided you have been signed up as a resident for at least 12 months.

Resident meaning full 'Residencia', not empadron or NIE or whatever other bit of paper people confuse with a residents paperwork.   

[Forto]

Just found this today-

The Convenio Especial special pay-in scheme to access the Spanish public healthcare system is now also available in the Canary Islands. Links to more information (for all regions where this option is available) can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/healthcare-in-spain

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Really good info/topic - ask ADMIN to move to local paperwork section after a few days to keep it easily available?

[admin]

Will do.

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Just saw this in 'News in the Sun'

British Consulate Free Healthcare Information Events


February 11, 2015
 
Some 45,000 British nationals are believed to live in the Canary Islands but only 32,000* are registered with their local authorities. That means one in three Brits risk missing out on basic social services when in future they need it most.

So the British Consulates in Las Palmas and Tenerife, and the Healthcare Team in Spain that represents the UK`s Department of Health, are joining forces with local town halls to tell residents about the importance and benefits of registering for healthcare and other public services.

Discover why you should register on the ‘padrón`

Between 24th and 26th February the joint team will host four free information events in Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Tenerife and Gran Canaria, where British residents can find out why it is worthwhile registering on the ‘padrón`, get answers to their questions on healthcare and what services the British Consulates offer, and raise any other concerns they may have.

Find out about the new healthcare option for early retirees

The Healthcare Team will also provide information about the new “convenio especial”, a special pay-in public health insurance scheme in the Canary Islands for those not otherwise covered for state-run healthcare, such as early retirees. They will also explain how to register for healthcare in general and how to get a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) if you are a worker or a pensioner.

The British Consul for the Canary Islands, Charmaine Arbouin, says:

“Our consular staff all too often see British citizens who are in desperate need of assistance because they have failed to appreciate how important it is to register correctly for healthcare and other social services when living overseas.

“Whether registered or not, I urge all British residents to come to these free information sessions where local consular staff and healthcare representatives will provide reliable, up-to-date information on a wide range of issues.”

Admission to all events is free and there is no need to register in advance.

The venues, dates & times are:

Lanzarote:     Tuesday 24th February @ 11.00hrs
 Sala Fondeadero, La Tiñosa, Puerto del Carmen

Fuerteventura:           Tuesday 24th Feb @ 17.30hrs
 Hotel Sheraton Fuerteventura Beach, Caleta de Fuste

Tenerife:         Wednesday 25th February 2015 @ 18.30hrs
 Auditorio Infanta Leonor, Avenida Juan Carlos I, Los Cristianos

Gran Canaria:            Thursday 26th February @ 16.30hrs
 Centro Socio Cultural de Mayores, Calle Santa Brigida s/n, San Fernando, Playa del Inglés

The full programme and latest news on the events will be published on the Event Page on the British Embassy`s Brits Living in Spain Facebook page.

[admin]

I've put the event in the top slogan area of every page.

[SheilaW]

The implication is that all you need to do to get free health care is to register with the town hall. AFAIK that's complete rubbish. So, are they informing or misinforming?

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

I'm thinking of going along to see just what they are saying on 24th - anyone want a lift from Corralejo?

[gattaca66]

The implication is that all you need to do to get free health care is to register with the town hall. AFAIK that's complete rubbish. So, are they informing or misinforming?

As I read it, if you have been resident for a full twelve months and have full residencia, as an early retiree you can sign up for 'convenio especial'. For a monthly fee you will get the same healthcare benefits as any other resident with full rights. I'm going to the event to find out more, but it does look promising!

[Deso]

€60 a month each is the figure I have seen on several forums. As you say, 1 years residency to qualify.
Don't forget to post back when you have all the info thanks.   

[lander]

Hi Tamara
I would be intersted in going, if I could get a lift please? 

[Spike On Q]

I'm going too - some of these events have been cancelled in the past through "Lack of Interest"

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Hi Tamara
I would be intersted in going, if I could get a lift please? 

PM sent  Lander

[Deso]

Did anyone go to this?

Was it 'clear as mud' ?   

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Hi
Yes I went along with 2 friends from Corralejo. We all went wanting different things from the session and that is what we all got. It was well attended - they even had to grab extra seating in to accommodate everyone.
As expected a lot of things are complicated and the best advice I picked up on was to go to the horse's mouth for info:

www.gov.uk/world/spain
www.gov.uk/knowbeforeyougo
www.gov.uk/living-in-spain
www.healthcareinspain.eu

Consulate email: Spain.consulate@fco.gov.uk  (response within 10 days)
Healthcare email: use the Contact form on the healthcareinspain website. (The Madrid team cover The Canaries)

Consulate phone numbers: 902 109 356 or 917 146 300

The ladies who gave the presentations offered to load the PowerPoint slides on the websites so they should be available soon.

A couple of points of interest:
* Convenio Especial - you need to have been on the PADRON for 12 months before you can apply. Residencia wasn't mentioned as a requirement. Doesn't include prescription costs and gives no right to an EHIC card. Good for early retirees with EXISTING CONDITIONS covered. 60€ per month.
* Spanish state healthcare is available to UK nationals of any age who obtained their Residencia here before 24 Apr 2012 and who earn less than 100,000€ pa.
* Some Ayuntamientos offer discounts to people on their PADRON. eg Antigua offer a 4% reduction on various taxes: IBI, basura domestica, vehiculos, and others.

Some general stats that I found interesting (as at end 2013, the latest figures available):
Population of FV - 106,930
Of these, 5,365 were British. (This was the number on PADRONS, so reality may be a lot higher.)
Total visitors to island - 1,990,987 of which 510,456 were British.

As I said at the beginning, we all went in with different needs and we all took something positive away. Everybody in the hall probably had different pre-existing knowledge and from some of the questions asked by the presenters and answered by the audience, a lot of this so called knowledge was nothing but hearsay or misinformation so I'll reiterate my comment, 'Go to the horse's mouth!' They all said they would welcome online queries if you can't find answers on the websites, and if you hit a barrier when going for Spanish Healthcare that you don't think is right according to what you have read on the websites - contact them!

The author of this article (post) cannot be held responsible .........................  but I hope it helps some of you.

The big message of the night seemed to be Get On The Padron - you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

[Deso]

Thanks for the info Tamara.

A night out full of useful and correct information and no hangover in the morning, result!   

[Kyle]

Hypothetical question - If an individual had a UK and FV address ( but lived on FV permanently) - would a cost effective way to cover healthcare for emergencies and the like be annual travel health insurance ............significantly cheaper than the 60 euro monthly figure mentioned?

As I say , hypothetical and perhaps a little "cheeky" but worth discounting as a potential option?

[PHo]

I think most annual travel policies have a limit, perhaps ninety days, of cover per year.

[Spike On Q]

More like 45 days plus as with every "dodge" these days you may be found out and that puts the cost of your treatment fairly and squarely in your court. We've seen appeals here for people trying to bend the rules paying in the long run not just in money terms but in personal devastation. Strangely some people put the time and effort in to getting it right and live a quiet and trouble free existance here whilst others try to beat the system and end up in all sorts of deep water and aggravation! Anyone know where I can get a free lunch?

[Spike On Q]

The foreign section of the Ministry of Works and Pensions are a mine of information and are actually very helpful and friendly. You can call them FREE using VOIPCHEAP.COM if you have a good internet connection (not free)

[fuertebears]

be interested to know if anyone has managed to get health care under this one ´ Spanish state healthcare is available to UK nationals of any age who obtained their Residencia here before 24 Apr 2012 and who earn less than 100,000€ pa´.  thanks