Poland has received approval from the European Commission to launch a cross-border e-prescription exchange service with other member states. This new functionality will enable foreign patients to fill an e-prescription at a Polish pharmacy and Polish patients to buy prescription drugs abroad.

“The European Commission’s approval is the first step towards Poles being able to fill their e-prescriptions in other EU countries (Finland) and EU residents (Estonia, Croatia, Portugal and Finland) being able to use this solution in Poland”, reports the Ministry of Health.

Poland needs to realize further activities consisting in establishing organisational details with the member states with which Poles will exchange e-prescriptions, as well as connecting Polish pharmacies to the IT system. Completion of this stage will allow the launch of the exchange of e-prescriptions and the possibility of filling them in selected pharmacies in some EU countries. As more countries join the programme, the scope of possibilities to dispense such prescriptions will be expanded.

Cross-border e-prescription is the term used to describe an e-prescription that can be filled in an EU country other than the one in which it was issued. It will be filled for full payment and can be issued for medicinal products with the availability category of ‘Rp’ (prescribed by a doctor) or ‘OTC’ (not prescribed by a doctor), reimbursed medicines and non-reimbursed medicines.

Upon return to Poland, the citizen has the right to apply to the insurer for reimbursement, provided that the preparation in question is reimbursed by the national health insurance system.

It is not possible to issue a cross-border e-prescription for psychotropic drugs, narcotics, prescription drugs, medicinal products with the availability category ‘Rpz’ (issued under a doctor’s prescription for restricted use), foodstuffs for special nutritional purposes and medical devices.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński