Pensioners want painkillers, vitamins on Gesy

Painkillers, vitamins and other pharmaceutical products needed by a lot of patients should be covered under the national health scheme (Gesy), the Union of Cypriot Pensioners (Ekysy) said on Friday.

After a meeting with the health minister and the management of the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO), Ekysy’s General Secretary Costas Skarparis said that there are still several medicines that are not prescribed through Gesy.

These concern anti-viral drugs, cough syrup, painkillers, medicated creams, vitamins which are necessary, injections or even osteoporosis pills, among others.

As a result, thousands of pensioners have to pay large sums of money every month to obtain medicines very important for their health, the body said in a written statement.

The group requested that the health minister and Health insurance organisation (HIO) the body overseeing Gesy, resolve the issue as soon as possible.

In their statement, Ekysy also welcomed an HIO decision to meet their long-standing request and broaden the prescription criteria for pharmaceutical products which mainly young patients have so far been asked to pay the full cost of their purchase with a “very high amount”.

Recently, the HIO issued an announcement saying Xarelto, Eliquis and Pradaxa drugs can be obtained by patients through the national health scheme if they meet certain criteria.