Jane...are you allowed to only collect one months supply at a time? in the UK...Nick used to get 6 months at a time no problem....of course the prescription in the UK is much cheaper if you collect all 6 months in one go....but then I guess it would be much cheaper to collect it 6 monthly here as well.
Would be so much easier if there was a general policy....its the equivalent of postcode lottery.
Very wise....the kitchen aid is the best bit of kit...and just adding to the attachments is the best idea.
Hi all. Some great information here - now I know where to get Vaseline! I just want it for my lips but I guess they don't sell it in those handy little pocket size tins.
I have to say some of the experiences given here surprise me. Maybe village life is as different here as it is back in Ireland - all the locals here are very friendly. Life in the city is much different and much more anonymous.
We only get freebies at Christmas in the pharmacie, and they asked us if we would accept generic brands, which we did of course. Our doctor gives us 3-monthly prescriptions - I'm on medication for high blood pressure and our doc knows I have my own machine to check my BP, so she does not need to monitor me so closely. Thankfully, Henry only needs antihistamines. She will repeat his prescription when I see her, and asks to see him only every 6 months. Our Carte Vitale and mutuelle are up and running so no cash is paid at doctor or pharmacie. However, when I first arrived here, I showed her the BP tablets I had been prescribed in Dublin, and she prescribed the same - exactly the same tablets, same bottle, same design, only difference was wording was in French - but HALF the price I was paying in Dublin.
On the down side, the owner of the local grocery shop has a face that would sour cream.
Vaseline is widely used for battery terminals but it can form a film causing high resistance on the terminals, i say can not will , far better to use the designated spray terminal fliud
Prescribing Garnier products is ridiculous - always make sure you ask for medications that are re-imbursable by the SS or Mutuel - they exist normally!
All quincailleries and motor product shops in France sell Vaseline - it's used for battery terminals on cars and other 12V applications.
I also find it is very, very salty - I don't use a lot of salt for cooking, and my husband says I am very sensitive to commercial products with salt it, but others I know also say it is salty.
I am thinking of getting an attachment for my Kitchen Aid to make sausages with.
Yes, it is a bit of a strange one - the doctors do write prescriptions for things that are non reimbursed.
I'm not sure why they do that, but as you say, checking online very often produces cheaper results.
I do feel that the fact that supermarkets (do not yet) sell some of these items is the reason pharmacies charge the maximum price.
A few years back they were protesting about a very small move in that direction - sadly there is still very much a mentality of protectionism in France when it comes to commercial matters.
It does seem to be at odds with the global market idea and shopping on line doesn't it?
Hi Jane, have followed your part of this discussion - I have seen vaseline in France, but it wasn't where I expected. It was in a store called Fabio Lucci - they sell clothing for the family and have one section of products like talc, shampoo, and vaseline! If you are lucky there will be a branch near you or a similar store.
If anyone has problems with dry skin the Bioderma range are excellent and not too expensive,much better than all the 'beauty creams'.Using them transformed the skin on my face. Get them at Parapharmacies.
Carol,you said that till he hit 65 your husband was paying full whack for the doctor,is there something I dont know?I'm 66 and noone mentioned a reduction.Could it be because I'm not retired?
Carol, we have six monthly prescriptions here I the Clunysois.
Hello Helen, my wife recently saw a dermatological consultant at the local hospital. The consultant gave her an ordonnance for three items for three months. So, innocently I trotted along to the pharmacy we use. The pharmacist checked his computer and advised the three items (Garnier products) were not reimbursable, and cost €121 for the first month's supply!! I said no, too much, went home and checked online. The identical products were on sale at about two-thirds of the cost he had quoted. That was annoying enough, so I do not understand why the consultant wrote that ordonnance in the first place. My wife had been referred by our doctor, who clearly decided it was a medical problem, needing expert attention. Why did the consultant prescribe products which were so obviously commercial!
Veronique, freebies are an unknown commodity here in Southern Burgundy. Lucky you.
Haroon, France is not the Centre of the Universe. It is a country with deep problems. This is not just my opinion, but those of French guests at our home last night.
It is this failure to face the need to become more competitive that is driving young French people abroad to find work.
I can’t tell how old you are and if you belong to that group because you haven’t uploaded your 'photo yet.
Germany, the economic boiler house of the EU, will not accept the attitude of Monsieur Hollande for much longer.
I had lost my Bricanyl whe. I came to France and could buy it at the pharmacy in Cluny without a prescription for 14 euros. This was about six years ago.
hmm....interesting...thank you guys for this. Sounds like they are in cahoots. No matter...we are aiming back to the UK this Autumn.
I take Aprovil and will have to take it indefinitely - my 3 month prescription is collectible from my French GP secretary with a visit every 6 months to check - there is absolutely no need to see the GP every month for a chronic condition with permanent medication, unless he is specifically keeping an eye on it - it's not the government insisting on a visit at all - it's entirely up to the GP surely?
my husband said the same about the 100% ADL. Just shows...our doctor told my husband he had to go every month as it wasnt legal to prescribe more than one month at a time...and the pharmacist said the same...my husband was livid...until he hit 65 at Xmas...he was paying full whack for GP visits and prescriptions. His GP in the UK did a 6 monthly blood test....here its the same.
Agree with Catharine here.....let the supermarkets sell basic drugs and get some competition going!