Today I had to deal with a client who came to France house hunting and who unfortunately slipped on the ice and broke his leg. He was taken to St Malo hospital for treatment and on his departure was facing a €32 000 bill! He could not leave the hospital until he had either showed the receptionist his European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) that he left at home in England or paid the very high bill! To sort it out and to be released from hospital without paying he had to contact the NHS and get some paperwork urgently faxed to the hospital. It was rather worrying as he hadn’t got this type of money in his bank account. Who has?!So my advice is “don’t forget your EHIC if you are coming to France”! You can apply online for a European Health Insurance Card. Visit this site: here.
You will need to provide details of your full name, date of birth and National Insurance or NHS number (CHI in Scotland or Health and Care Number in Northern Ireland).
You can also call the NHS Business Services Authority on 0845 606 2030.
Prior to January 1st 2006, it was called a E111.
It has the same purpose:
It can be used to cover any necessary medical treatment due to either an accident or illness within the European Economic Area (EEA). The EHIC entitles the holder to state-provided medical treatment within the country they are visiting and the service provided will be the same as received by a person covered by the country’s ‘insured’ medical scheme.
Apply for one today if you are thinking about going abroad! It can take up to 21 days to be processed!
Very sound advice. It's not the kind of thing you think about when you are caught up in the dream of relocating to France.
ReplyDelete