Prescription Charges
Prescription charges from the 1st of March have been revised as per the budget in 2016 for patients over 70 who have a valid GMS card and their dependants as well . The new fee per item for these patients is €2 per item from €2.50 per item for other GMS card holders. The new monthly threshold for these patients and their dependants is also €20 per family. For more information about this please click here
Cialis and Levitra No longer allowed on PCRS Schemes
The HSE has also decided that they will no longer reimburse cialis and levitra on any of the schemes , with no exceptions. They will only reimburse sildenafil at the reference price. It should be noted that this also applies to patients participating who get their medicines through the DPS. These patients will have to pay privately for Cialis or Levitra or they will have to speak to their GP about getting switched to sildenafil. More information about this may be found here
Clarification on Third Party Verification
The HSE has clarified its position on certain cases for third party verification. From the 1st of November the HSE decided to enforce that patients who are getting GMS prescriptions sign the prescriptions after they receive the items as proof. This led to some confusion about certain cases such as nursing homes, or patients who may be illiterate. The HSE set out the guidelines for these cases in this letter which can be found here.