Frequently asked questions on European electronic prescription interoperability

If you have a health card from the autonomous community of Andalusia, Aragon, Canary Islands, Cantabria, Catalonia, Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Ceuta, Valencia, Extremadura, Galicia, Madrid, Melilla, Murcia, Navarra or the Basque Country, you can pick up your medication in several European countries. Updated information is available at https://www.sanidad.gob.es/areas/saludDigital/recetaElectronicaUE/mapaRecetaUE.htm

You will only be able to get your medication outside Spain, in the case of prescriptions made in your autonomous community of origin, i.e., the one in charge of issuing the health card. For example, if your health card is from the Basque Country, you will only be able to pick up medication prescribed in the Basque Country.

Currently you can pick up your medication at any pharmacy in the European countries with open cross-border dispensing service. Updated information is available at https://www.sanidad.gob.es/areas/saludDigital/recetaElectronicaUE/mapaRecetaUE.htm

In the case of Portugal, it is only available in a certain number of pharmacies, which can be consulted at https://www.spms.min-saude.pt/a-minha-saude-na-europa/

In the case of the Czech Republic, it is only available in a certain number of pharmacies, which can be consulted at https://www.epreskripce.cz/preshranicni-erp-seznam-lekaren

A drug available in one European Union (EU) country may not be available in another EU country, or may be marketed under a different brand name. The pharmacist will dispense an equivalent medication.

You may pick up any product prescribed for you, except for the following:

• Narcotics and psychotropics.
• Medicines with more than 4 active ingredients.
• Effects and Accessories.
• Individualized vaccines.
• Extempory drugs.
• Dietotherapeutic products.

If you have a prescription for any of these products, you will be able to see them at the pharmacy, but they will not be dispensed to you.

It is necessary to present the individual health card of your autonomous community of origin. If the health card does not have a photograph, an official identification document with a photograph (ID card or passport) must be provided in order to be correctly identified.

The European Health Insurance Card is not valid for picking up medication.

If your health card has the CIPSNS identifier, recognizable by its pattern consisting of 8 letters “B” followed by 2 letters and 6 numbers (BBBBBBBBBBBB********), this should be the identifier provided at the pharmacy, known as the National Person Identifier.

In case your health card does not have the CIPSNS, the pharmacist must enter two identifiers: the regional CIP, which varies in format and length and is called Regional Person Identifier, and the CITE, a regional identifier with a 6-digit pattern (8034**).

You will pay 100% of the price of the product in the country where you are picking it up. Request the receipt and the invoice of the dispensation made, and once in Spain, present them in your autonomous community of origin to request the reimbursement of the amount corresponding to you.

You may not pick up medication on behalf of another person.

You will only be able to pick up medication for yourself and always after presenting your individual health card and identifying yourself with an official document (ID card and passport) with your photo.

Before the pharmacy can access any of your information, it must provide you with a document in Spanish language, where you are informed of the processing of your personal data. This document is called “Patient Information Sheet”, and its contents are available at the following link: https://www.sanidad.gob.es/profesionales/recetaElectronicaSNS/miSaludUE/docs/ep-pin-es.pdf.

This document explains the category of data being processed, its purposes, who can access your data, the legal basis, how long and where your data will be kept and your rights.

Yes, you can ask the pharmacist for the prescribing physician's contact information, including email and phone number. This data is available in the list of dispensable drugs.