Just received my new EHIC. Looking forward to the day when we’ll be travelling again. 
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How long did it take Sue?
Site opened at beginning of November
Sorry, I meant from applying to receiving carte?
They only became available in November
As Jane said Lily. I applied the day the site opened in November.
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I applied on the 10th November… so it shouldn’t be long now…
Is that from the uk because of being an S1 holder. Are we a special category as EHIC are generally not available to uk mainland!
As far as I am aware this was covered in the Withdrawal Agreement. Anyone in receipt of a form S1 before the end of the transition period can apply for the new EHIC-E card from the UK. As can anyone living legally in an EU country before the transition period ends receive the new EHIC-E if they are entitled to a form S1, which more commonly is when they finally claim their UK State Pension.
When I phoned Newcastle I was told they had to have ‘signed off’ my S1 to the French system before I could appy for the new EHIC but as soon as the S1 had been processed, I would definitely get one.
I was lucky then. I turned up at CPAM St Lo with no RV. I was asked if I had one booked. As the answer was ‘no’ I was offered one - '“How about tomorrow at 11:00?”
So my S1 went into the system and I wait …
Meantime, I need to get another batch of my 'scrips. With S1 and all pending, how is this done?
You go to doc, get ordnance, pay doc, and ask for a “feuille de soins” - a brown form. Take ordnance to chemist, pay chemist, and ask for a feuille de soins.
In due course, when everything sorted with CPAM and you have account set up etc you send in the feuille de soins and will get reimbursed at whatever rate is applicable. You usually have a year to submit them.
Thanks Jane. I’m not entirely clear … you mentioned asking for the feuille de soin twice. Once at the doc, again at the chemist.
And is the account set up with the doc or the chemist?
Yes, you need a separate feuille de soins for everything you pay for. You used to end up with handfuls of them in the old days. The account is set up with Ameli (CPAM/your caisse). They will ask you for your bank details so future reimbursements are automatically deposited.
When you give your carte vitale to chemist and doctor they will register you on their system, and in future once everything is in place it is all done electronically. Apart from any proportion you have to pay yourself of course (with the feuille de soins system they will only reimburse their portion).
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Thanks Jane. Ah! Light has dawned! A form from the doc to get his bung reimbursed and another for reimburse of scrips.
You’re like the Eddistone Lighthouse. Kept many a dazed and confused matelot off the rocks.
But when you are finally “in the system” then comes challenge of trying to understand/reconcile how the reimbursements are arrived at. The amounts arriving in our bank account bear no relation to amounts paid out, and I know you don’t automatically get say 70%… my Ameli online account has all the relevant entries, but I’ve given up trying to understand them, many direct to health providers, pharmacy etc, etc.
Cpams won’t accept you onto their books until you have been resident in France for three months…gov’ instruction… so for the first three months its rely on Ehic hoping UK will repay you, or get short term private cover, or keep your fingers crossed
If you are working or have a S1 you are accepted straight away. It is only inactifs who have to wait.
And once you get your head around the approach it is very clear. For every single medical act there is a price set by social security and a percentage they will reimburse you for that act.
So if X costs 100€, and the social security price is 100€ and the reimbursement rate is 100% you will get back 100€, minus the forfait or franchise applicable (usually between 0.50centimes and 4€). So if you have actually paid out hard cash you get, say, 99.50€.
But if this act has been billed straight to CPAM then the 0.50centimes is added to your slate. So the next time you actually pay for something it will be taken off the amount you are reimbursed. Since this happens less often now I find when I do actually pay, or have something like a car journey reimbursed, I end up with nothing as my slate needs to be wiped clean first.
The other wrinkle is that sometime X costs 100€, but the social security price is only 50€ and the reimbursement rate is only 50%. So you will only get 50% of 50€, ie 25€. And you will get 24.50€ not 99.50€.
Hope that helps…
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Head for Points: Your EHIC EU insurance card has been reprieved.
it does thanks though I do understand these principles and rules…but reconciling the actual amount is difficult, so much so I’ve about given up, now treat the payments as amounts that fall into our bank a/c like crumbs off a table !
Yes it took me a while to figure out that all those tiddler amounts were the reason I didn’t get some reimbursements; however, there is a kicker - it seems that if CPAM don’t pay you, your Mutuel is not triggered, so if you were due a top-up from that source you lose that too.