I haven’t been back for a while. Hope you’re all doing well.
I’m heading to Belgium soon for my studies, I’m considering taking 12-month entecavir with me, because I’m concerned that it might take a while to get my residence card and health insurance sorted (I’m a Non-EEA), and I’ll need some time to get familiar with the medical system there. Does anyone know how I should declare this to customs? Also, if anyone in Europe has experience with getting entecavir, I’d love to know how easy it is to obtain and what the price is like.
In my experience, there are no barriers to taking in your own meds into Europe and I don’t remember it being a customs issue at all.
With health insurance and a doctor’s prescription, acquiring antivirals was quite easy (at least in Germany), but I had a pharmacist colleague that walked me through it…
Thanks a lot for your reply. It’s really helpful! Just to double-check, do you think it’s okay if I bring a 12-month supply of entecavir with me? Also, if I have health insurance, is entecavir fully covered?
Re: bringing your medications with you, I have never run into any issues regarding bringing my own meds and I travel quite a bit.
Regarding health insurance coverage, I’m not sure. It may differ in different European countries and what specific health insurance you are covered under.
@Sumaya and others, please, how difficult is it to buy TDF in India? Do I need doctor’s prescription? and is it possible to order for it online to avoid discrimination?
My understanding is that many people buy antivirals from India for much cheaper than in other countries such as the US, including online. However, I’ve never tried. Would be great if anyone has experience in this to comment!
I am not aware of the prescription situation in India as I have never visited it.
However, when I was in Bangladesh we entered any pharmacy and asked for medication without a prescription. My aunt used to hand a note to the pharmacist because she was too shy to talk and they would wrap the medicine in a brown paper bag. I have heard you can do the same in India but don’t take my word for it. Maybe you can find a pharmacist in the parts of India you want to stay in and see if you can email them about your concerns.
I hope this helps, but it would be better if a forum member from India could give a clearer answer.