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My girlfriend has moved to the UK for 5 months. She needs refrigerated drugs for her medical condition that we usually get in Italy.

Is there any reputable service that allows sending refrigerated drugs from Italy to the UK?

I don't think she's could ever manage to get it from NHS since she's Italian and the drug is really expensive (around 3500 Eur each).

I've seen this question but it implies travelling with the drug, and nowadays it's not feasible.

KingBOB
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  • Within the US refrigerated/frozen drugs are frequently shipped in Styrofoam containers with ice packs to keep them cold. (I work for a hospital system - we get shipments at least 1x/wk this way.) The shipping is handled by UPS/FedEx/etc. Of course there are requirements for notification of contents, but any carrier can/will handle them. I don't know if this also applies internationally. – FreeMan Jul 08 '21 at 17:00
  • If you search for "refrigerated courier" (without the quotes) and maybe "europe" (again, without the quotes) you'll find some likely suppliers which you can contact. Looks relatively straightforward. I guess there's the additional issue of UK being outside the EU now so customs costs. – Spehro Pefhany Jul 08 '21 at 17:50
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    Refrigreration is no problem, just use an ice pack in a styrofoam box and overnight shipping. A much greater problem is to send medication internationally. If health service is not covered by NHS, I assume that your girlfriend has some other kind of medical insurance while living in the UK? She should check if it is not possible to get the medication covered by her insurance even if she buys it in the UK. – Tor-Einar Jarnbjo Jul 08 '21 at 20:15
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    I hope you like paperwork, as there's likely going to be a lot of it required to send what I'm presuming is a controlled substance internationally... – Doc Jul 08 '21 at 20:22
  • @Tor-EinarJarnbjo I wouldn't rule out the possibility of a drug that must be refrigerated but not frozen - doable, but a little more sophistication might be needed – Chris H - UK Jul 09 '21 at 11:21
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    I think you are being unnecessarily pessimistic about her chances of getting the drug through the NHS. Short-term visitors from the EU can continue to access medically necessary healthcare through the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) scheme. You could try asking about this on our [expatriates.se] site. – DJClayworth Jul 09 '21 at 13:27

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