Portugal Property Info

Portugal has an excellent pharmacy service, (Farmacia in Portuguese and each has an illuminated sign in the form of a green cross outside) many/most pharmacists speak English and it would be very unusual to find a pharmacy with only one English speaker. A surprising number of products are available without a prescription and then there are usually at least two choices - the original manufacturers trade name (OEM) or a generic. The generic is usually lower cost.

There are several websites to locate pharmacies and many have their own individual website - most are listed on https://portalnacional.com.pt/farmacias/ and its possible to search this site by location.

In order to find international names of medicines you can go to https://www.drugs.com/international/

There is a list of medicines that are available over the counter without a prescription on this website ...

http://www.infarmed.pt/web/infarmed/ent ... a_de_mnsrm

To find out if the medicine you are using is actually sold in Portugal there are a selection of websites, here are two examples ...

https://www.farmaciasportuguesas.pt/catalogo/

https://www.asuafarmaciaonline.pt/

Another useful resource is the Infarmed Drug Database: http://app7.infarmed.pt/infomed/inicio.php

Better always to translate back into your first language using Google Chrome as your browser.

Be careful to check dosages of active ingredients and be prepared to cut tablets of alternative brands into fractions accordingly.

If you are from the USA you are going to get a surprise as regards the cost of medicines in Portugal - a fraction of US prices.

You can buy asthma inhalers here over the counter and much cheaper than the UK

Last year I developed a really nasty allergy, so I went to the local emergency clinic (cost €14) and saw a Spanish doctor. I was prescribed oral antibiotics, a cortisone cream and antihistamine tablets so trotted off to the farmacia, expecting to pay megabucks (three items on prescription in the UK would have cost nearly £27). The cost was actually €16.80.....

When I returned to the UK, I saw my GP, who confirmed the diagnosis - and the treatment (he didn't recognise the "tradenames" of the medicines, but they were the correct ingredients).

Of course, this comes at the cost of overpriced "over the counter" medicines, as "generics" seem to be unknown in Portugal and you end up paying for a branded product..... so bring your own Ibuprofen!