Move to Ireland? Medical care question and others

[Nomada]

Can I pick the brains of some of the ishers on here who have moved to Ireland? I've been considering it as an option but one of the things that concerns us is wether or not it would be the best thing for my OH as he has had a serious medical condition and although it's been 'cured' he might need to be on medication for the rest of his life now. I've been looking around on line and I've come across the infromation about medical cards bit I've got no idea if he'd qualify for one and the info's quite vague! I'm confused easily! What is the care like in GP and hospitals? I'm scared about what would happen if his kidney condition came back.

What is the planning system like? Is it very similar to the UK? Do they look more favourably on low impact homes and the like?

[MuddyWitch]

I'm sure some expat Irish isher will be able to help you, but if not the lovely people on here: http://countrytalkandtips.myfreeforum.org/index.php have been very patient with all our questions, so why not ask over there?

MW

[Cligereen]

Hi Nomada,

The medical care in Ireland is rather hit and miss. The system is nothing like the NHS. Only those on a very low income (basically the dole) are entitled to medical cards, those fractionally above this limit get GP only cards, which gives free GP visits. Everybody else pays. A visit to a GP costs between €50 and €60 per visit. You pay the full cost of all drugs on top of this.

A visit to A&E costs €100 per visit unless you have a medical card (the GP card doesn't cover A&E). You get charged for each night you spend in hospital (approx €120 per night) although there is a cap of about €600 per person per year. Hospital stays are free for medical card holders.

Most people who don't have medical cards take out private health insurance although this still doesn't cover GP or A&E visits.

Some people with certain long-term medical conditions may qualify for a medical card regardless of income but the list is very specific and many do not qualify. The country is so broke just now that I can see fewer and fewer qualifying for medical cards.

I'm a nurse working in an Irish hospital. I previously worked in an NHS hospital. While I was working in the NHS I used to complain about it vociferously...now I know just how wrong I was. Believe me, the NHS is a very valuable resource and is there when you need it most - for free. If people only knew what the system is like here, they'd appreciate the NHS with all its faults.

Having said all of that, thankfully we have just voted in a new Government who plan to totally overhaul the health system to make it more accessible...we'll just have to wait and see.

On the planning issues, planning for once-off houses is now very hard to get because there are so many ghost estates left half built from when the housing bubble collapsed. There are plans to demolish half built estates and because of this they really frown on any further houses being built. That's not to say you wouldn't be lucky though. If you plan to renovate or alter a house that is already there, you are much more likely to get planning permission.

Hope that helps, pm me if you have any further Q's.

Clig.

[JulieSherris]

Yep, I'll agree with Clig on the house front there....

Nomada, if you have a look on daft.ie, you can see what's available over here - be prepared though, there's THOUSANDS!!
In our area, think country, VERY rural, farming area, the house prices are left on the web site at the original asking price, but are generally selling for anything up 40% less!
Even out here, we have several ghost estates that will probably be pulled down eventually & yes, planning permission is rare for new builds now.

Folk who are looking to buy a wreck & restore it will find that planning is so much easier, & there's a lot that you could do without permission anyway. We can pop an extension on the back of our property without permission, as long as it can't be seen from the front and isn't higher than the original house.
We could also extend our derelict cottage at the end of the garden, but we could choose to knock it down, leave the first course of bricks on the foundation and rebuild - all without official permission!

Then again, to do these projects, we'd also have to win the lotto.... best I start buying tickets!!

[greenorelse]

The health service in Ireland is a pure shambles. And the latest change in government is likely to make it worse, not better. There's been a shift over to the right in the main party, with what looks like a coalition partner who will be the scapegoat for the next disastrous few years.

Anyway, Cligereen has it fairly well summed up otherwise (apart from the disagreement about the incoming Tweedledumbers). The stupid answer: stay in good health!

Be prepared to take out medical insurance. Crazy, really. I totally disagree with the profit motive being involved in health care but we're stuck with it for now.

There are maybe ten revenue streams in health care in Ireland (hope this doesn't frighten you off):

(a) PRSI contributions
(b) GP fees
(c) A&E fees
(d) Health insurance
(e) Sickness insurance (to cover for loss of earnings)
(f) Universal social charge
(g) Dental charges
(h) Dental insurance
(i) Prescription charges
(j) The stuff I've missed

If a government hell-bent on privatising the very air we breathe makes the health system 'more accessible', well...

One problem, apart from the entrenched interests, is quite nice in a way: the low population, spread out over the country. Whereas the UK has, I dunno, 40 million people paying to support a health service, we have maybe two to three million.

I would dearly love to see the above revenue streams combined into one charge which everyone above a certain income has to pay, the profit motive taken out of the picture altogether and the absurd weight of bureaucracy honed down to a reasonable level. Not going to happen - instead, expect to pay more and get less.

[Nomada]

Thanks so much for your replies! It's really helpful and it's given us a lot to think about, I know the NHS has problems but we're so lucky to have it. My bloke is worried about healthcare (me too) and the state of the economy but I do think the UK will be much the same in the future. We'd looked at plots of land and old cottages and I without a doubt think an old cottage is the way to go. Thanks!

[Odsox]

I didn't reply to this earlier as I am in a slightly different situation.
I officially don't work, never have since moving here (don't get dole money because I don't want a job), just spend 8 hours a day 6 days a week being totally self sufficient in vegetables, eggs and most fruit (and soon chicken meat).
So according to the authorities I am entitled to a medical card, which means I get almost everything free, just major dental work and glasses frames to pay for.
So if you can afford to do likewise (one working and one at home) you might be in the same category.

[JulieSherris]

Tony, would that mean I'd qualify for a card then?

We've never looked into it because Andy has private medical through work & it covers me as well - just not for Dr visits though.
Saying that, I've not seen a Doc since I've been here, apart from the people back in Manchester & they don't count anyway!

[oldjerry]

All uk subjects that retain an address in uk(you dont have to own it,a friend,or relative perhaps)and a GP that goes with it,can return for medical or optical treatment, 'Pirate Paddy' may make that a viable proposition in some cases.

[Odsox]

Tony, would that mean I'd qualify for a card then?

We've never looked into it because Andy has private medical through work & it covers me as well - just not for Dr visits though.
Saying that, I've not seen a Doc since I've been here, apart from the people back in Manchester & they don't count anyway!

I'm pretty sure you would Julie, especially as you have a mortgage and Andy doing many miles working.
Unless Andy is on €250,000 a year.

[JulieSherris]

Unless Andy is on €250,000 a year.

[greenorelse]

I officially don't work, never have since moving here (don't get dole money because I don't want a job)...So according to the authorities I am entitled to a medical card, which means I get almost everything free

That's interesting, Odsox. Does that mean you have no money coming in? Or have I read it wrongly?

Our aim is for one of us to work at home, simply just growing and dealing with food, the other to earn the bare minimum to get by and thus have enough time to help out. The idea of herself thus being able to get a medical card would be a serious incentive toward that.

Do you mind sharing some more details?

[Odsox]

I'm exactly the same as you are planning.
OH is working full time on just above minimum wage and I stay at home growing and cooking (and cleaning now and again when it's a wet day and I'm really really bored).
We live quite well albeit simply, and our weekly shopping bill is normally about €30 - 40 for the two of us. We had our house well and truly insulated last year with a grant from SEI and our heating bill plummeted to the extent that we haven't had a fire for about 10 days since the sunny weather arrived.
Our biggest outlay is petrol as our nearest shop is 20 miles away, but even that is manageable at a tankful every 2 weeks.
So, we manage very well on one wage and could reduce our outgoings a lot more if necessary.

[greenorelse]

Right, thanks for that. That sounds very sensible. There's so much more we want to do before we 'retire' that having two modest wages coming in is our best bet. We manage with hardly using the car and our heating bills are very low, plus we're solvent (at the moment) and I want to keep it that way.

As time goes on - more home-grown food, more preparations - the thought of one of us losing our job becomes less daunting. You're an inspiration!

If it came to that, though (only one job that is) the medical card thing is useful to know. At the moment we pay health insurance and it's a whack of money but it has been handy to have on a couple of occasions.

[JulieSherris]

GOE, some friends of ours live in Sligo.
They both work, but don't earn a fortune & they built the 'big house' a few years ago, but with a hefty mortgage. (plus huge heating bills, etc etc)

He lost a good job a year ago & also lost their medical insurance along with that. She's quite paranoid about her health so they have registered with a doctor up north & use a friend's address for that - if need be.
So far, they've not had to use it, but he did the calculations & saw how much they had saved by not having medical insurance in the first place - phenomenal!!
A few of the guys my hubby works with don't have insurance either (they're on different pay-scales) and they think that it's actually cheaper to pay the bills as & when, rather than pay out a huge sum each month. I guess it's all dependent on different factors like age, general health & how 'doctor friendly' you are.

In the last 3 & 1/2 years, neither hubby or myself have needed the doctor - Andy hasn't been to the docs since before I met him... we bought our medical records with us when we moved here - according to the A4 sheet that is the total of his records, he last saw the doc in 1991 for a tetanus!!