prescription medication in Israel for American student

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Prescription medication in Israel for American student

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amother

Sun, Feb 10 2013, 10:53 pm

What is the easiest way to fill prescription medications for American children when away for a year in Israel? Our doctor has a policy not to prescribe for the entire year. What do seminary/yeshiva children do when away? What has been experiences and what would be the easiest solution? We need to continue the medication.
Thanks for any advice.

notshanarishona

Sun, Feb 10 2013, 11:32 pm

If your child is on a regular medicine he really should have some type of travel insurance so that in case something happens he will have medical care available.
If you don't have insurance, most medicines are more reasonably priced here than in US and I would just go to a family md without insurance which would probably cost around 100-200 nis a time and you can get rx for 3 months at a time.

DrMom

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 12:52 am

Perhaps if your daughter's/son's doctor fax (on his letterhead) a prescription to a local pharmacist, they coud fill the prescription locally?

working hard

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 1:51 am

Any meuchedet pharmacist will fill a prescription locally as long as it is on proper paper and contains the Dr.'s contact info and medical ID #.

working hard

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 1:54 am

I do not know how to edit a post. This is based on the fact that I just called Meuhedet and asked them, not based on personal experiance.

jackiejoel3

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 3:05 am

ALL seminary students are required (its part of tuition and fees) to have medical insurance in Israel. There is a dollar a day plan and covers everything. Your child should come with a filled prescription and then a written one she will be able to take to any pharmacist to have it filled. Your DR, should have a phone number etc on the prescription. This extra prescription is really only an insurance for her so she wont feel like she has to run to the Dr right away. When she gets to sem she will get some sort of welcome packet with the name and number of a local family Dr who speaks English. At that point all she will have to do is call up and make an appointment explain what meds she needs and the Dr will write her a prescription that can be given to the local pharmacist. I don't know the copay for meds on Harel (the insurance plan used by most sems/yeshivas) but it is probably less then what you are paying in the states. If this med is a psychotropic she should probably bring a letter from her Dr. explaining the need and the current course of treatment the she is on to ease the explanation.

shabbatiscoming

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 3:09 am

jackiejoel3 wrote:

This is not true in all midrashot and yeshivot. I work in a midrasha in the office and dealt with the whole health insurance thing. A pre existing prescription would not have anything to do with this. Not all sems have a local english speaking doctor either. Where we are there are israeli docs, thats it.
Other than that, I agree. OP, just have your daughter make an appointment with a local doc and get the prescription that way.
And DrMom, many pharmacies do not honer faxed prescriptions.

amother

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 7:53 am

Thank you so much for all your replies.
It is a daily medicine (not as needed) for anxiety so I want to have a solution before hand and not cause any greater anxiety trying to fill a prescription in Israel. Things have been going so well that I don't want to cause any disruption in the medication.
Looks like our plan will be:
1. Bring a month or two to Israel of medication (we won't be able to fill any more medication from home).
2. Bring a copy of the prescription with MD name/address/phone number and a letter why the child is taking the medication. Prescription from home may not be honored in Israel, but will have a copy with child.
3. Make an appointment with a local MD on arrival to Israel to get local prescription. The Yeshiva/Seminary will have local physician referral information.
Sounds like a plan.
Thanks again.

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 8:34 am

I may be wrong, but I think it's only pharmacy STORES that can only fill one or two months. If you order it you can get 6 months at a time:
https://www.express-scripts.com

tizunabi

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 8:48 am

If it makes you calmer, I have filled american doctor prescriptions in Israel. They don't really care too much as long as they have a prescription. Also your doctor might have experience with this situation, why don't you ask the doctor what to do?

shabri

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 9:32 am

As someone in mental health I would tell you one of the biggest issues that can crop up are American seminary/yeshiva kids who come here on psychotropic meds without having a psychiatrist here. Oftentimes the pharmacists here will not fill prescriptions from abroad. Oftentimes the meds here are different from what they have in America. Many times the student will have a reaction, or get worse, or something will happen and there is not so much a psychiatrist who is 9,000 miles away can do.

The best things to get a recommendation of a psychiatrist in Israel (there are several American ones) and have the student meet them once or twice. This way, they can prescribe the medication and also be on hand if something comes up during the year.

amother

Mon, Feb 11 2013, 9:37 pm

I can't thank everyone enough for all the great useful information.
My plan was to find a psychiatrist in Jerusalem just as a back-up and for a check-in a few times and/or as needed. If you have any recommendations/referrals, I'd appreciate the names, needs to be in Jerusalem. I'd prefer an American so they'd understand the seminary/yeshiva shtick, but can be male or female. If not an American, a good psychiatrist is most important and my child in fluent in Hebrew (we lived in Israel years and years ago).
One more question, is Lexapro or Celexa available in Israel pharmacies?

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