# Pain medication



## cruizes (Oct 9, 2011)

Hi everyone,
I am moving to Germany next month and although I will have a couple of months supply with me I need to find out what I need to do to get medicine like oxicodone or hydrocodone. In the US my doctor prescribed Vicodin but not sure if they have that in Germany. I have degenerative arthritis so have to live with this medicine. My doctors have told me to avoid ibprohen or paracetamol due to a previous surgery. BTW When I lived in Argentina I had to see a anesthesiaogist for this type of medicine as a regular doctor could not prescribe something this strong. Thanks for any info I can get.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Generally speaking, you'll need to see a doctor and let them either prescribe something for you - or refer you to a specialist who can do the prescription for you. Depends a bit on what your status is in Germany and whether or not you're covered by the national system through a job or some other means.

The doctor may want to do his/her own series of tests and may well prescribe whatever the local medical establishment uses to treat the pain you have. 
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## cruizes (Oct 9, 2011)

Bevdeforges said:


> Generally speaking, you'll need to see a doctor and let them either prescribe something for you - or refer you to a specialist who can do the prescription for you. Depends a bit on what your status is in Germany and whether or not you're covered by the national system through a job or some other means.
> 
> The doctor may want to do his/her own series of tests and may well prescribe whatever the local medical establishment uses to treat the pain you have.
> Cheers,
> Bev


I am retired so no job to contend with. I usually take my MRI's with me just in case I need them. But I guess the main question is so they actually have this type of medicine in Germany, I have heard that German doctors are sticklers about anything more than ibprohen or Bayer.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

cruizes said:


> I am retired so no job to contend with. I usually take my MRI's with me just in case I need them. But I guess the main question is so they actually have this type of medicine in Germany, I have heard that German doctors are sticklers about anything more than ibprohen or Bayer.


The rules related to prescribing pain killers are much stricter here in Europe. (And there doesn't appear to be the same "issue" with abuse of opioids here that you have in the US, either.) All you can do is to see a doctor and see what he or she suggests. It may be a prescription for pills - or it may be some form of treatment, like accupuncture or physical therapy of some variety.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## Tellus (Nov 24, 2013)

In Germany stuff like hydrocodone is subject of restriction by BTM, narcotics law. Can't desbribe by normal docs without getting problems by law.
Perhaps a physical therapist could help in combination of Cryotherapy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryotherapy


----------



## ALKB (Jan 20, 2012)

cruizes said:


> I am retired so no job to contend with. I usually take my MRI's with me just in case I need them. But I guess the main question is so they actually have this type of medicine in Germany, I have heard that German doctors are sticklers about anything more than ibprohen or Bayer.



What kind of visa and what type of health insurance will you be on?


----------



## Deiter (Sep 24, 2017)

I would also suggest you get a full copy of your medical history translated into German


----------



## *Sunshine* (Mar 13, 2016)

cruizes said:


> I am retired so no job to contend with. I usually take my MRI's with me just in case I need them. But I guess the main question is so they actually have this type of medicine in Germany, I have heard that German doctors are sticklers about anything more than ibprohen or Bayer.


Germany is not a good place for retirement if you have pre-existing conditions; health insurance is very expensive. 

Customs regularly confiscates prescription drugs mailed from abroad and there is a 3 month limit for prescription drugs you can bring with you.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Not sure if it's still the case, but when I lived in Germany you couldn't ship in any medications. They could, however, be shipped to a pharmacist and then the pharmacy would dispense them to you (assuming they were legal in Germany). I don't know if there was a charge for the dispensing of the meds.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## Tellus (Nov 24, 2013)

Bevdeforges said:


> Not sure if it's still the case, but when I lived in Germany you couldn't ship in any medications. They could, however, be shipped to a pharmacist and then the pharmacy would dispense them to you (assuming they were legal in Germany). I don't know if there was a charge for the dispensing of the meds.
> Cheers,
> Bev


You 're right , some medications which are not allowed by Health Admin like Opioids or Methadon etc. will be confiscated by customs. 
But if pains are too strong a trip to Amsterdam could be helpful...


----------



## cruizes (Oct 9, 2011)

ALKB said:


> What kind of visa and what type of health insurance will you be on?


Still working on the visa situation. It was a lot easier when I lived there before in 1980. You could stay as long as you wanted. Then cross over into another country and reset the clock. As a retiree I am confused about the 90 days in a 180 day period with a visa. Is it really possible to get a residency visa or is it just a dream?


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

You may have bigger problems than the legality and availability of your pain medication, I'm afraid.

Germany doesn't really have a retirement visa as such. As an American you can stay as a visitor in the Schengen zone for 90 days out of 180, so basically 3 months twice per year, with a 3 month gap between that requires you leave the Schengen countries. Hopping over the border won't do it, you need to relocate to the UK or somewhere else outside of Schengen.

To stay longer you would need a residence permit. These are normally granted only for working or studying, not simply for living off pension or savings. That being said, you can at least try to negotiate something with your local Ausländerbehörde, as the front-line officials have a fair bit of discretion and Americans, Canadians and citizens of other "privileged" countries are treated comparatively well.

Health insurance is likely to be a problem. If you're not legally resident you'd need to rely on tourist or travel insurance (which may or may not be a good deal - I have no idea). If you are resident in Germany, you'd be in the private system, which at retirement age could be quite expensive.

If you're keen on retiring in Europe, Spain or Portugal are likely better bets.


----------



## cruizes (Oct 9, 2011)

Nononymous said:


> You may have bigger problems than the legality and availability of your pain medication, I'm afraid.
> 
> Germany doesn't really have a retirement visa as such. As an American you can stay as a visitor in the Schengen zone for 90 days out of 180, so basically 3 months twice per year, with a 3 month gap between that requires you leave the Schengen countries. Hopping over the border won't do it, you need to relocate to the UK or somewhere else outside of Schengen.
> 
> ...


I expected this answer unfortunately but wasn’t surprised. I took care of the medicine problem because my insurance in US will write prescriptions for 6 months. So....
It looks like Spain or Portugal for us. Will probably go to Lisbon in December and see what they say about residency. Let’s hope for the best. Thanks for the info. I really appreciate you taking the time for me. Michael


----------



## Nononymous (Jul 12, 2011)

cruizes said:


> I expected this answer unfortunately but wasn’t surprised. I took care of the medicine problem because my insurance in US will write prescriptions for 6 months. So....
> It looks like Spain or Portugal for us. Will probably go to Lisbon in December and see what they say about residency. Let’s hope for the best. Thanks for the info. I really appreciate you taking the time for me. Michael


Unless your visit to Lisbon is purely a scouting trip, you'll find that you need to make all the visa applications from the US. Both Spain and Portugal seem to have deals whereby you can get permanent residence for buying a piece of property (on the order of 500k euro); Spain by all reports will grant you temporary residence on a "non-lucrative visa" if you are retired and have pension income. Not sure of the health insurance scenarios with either.


----------

