To think NHS Prescriptions are extortionate

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I am not sure what response I am looking for. Myself and 1 year old have been sick all week with flu. I have developed a chest infection and DD has had breathing problems. After a much appreciated GP visit I was pleased I was given a prescription for antibiotics, pain medication and an inhaler. I was advised to buy ibuprofen and paracetamol for DD as the ‘NHS do not give prescription for calpol’. I was absolutely astonished that this came to over £35! This is a lot from our budget. I don’t think I could afford to be sick again. I don’t know how some families with repeat prescriptions manage it. So annoyed as the pain medication is not even that strong and I could have just ‘overdosed’ on 49p over the counter medication. £9 per med is extortionate

@DowntownAbby

The pharmacists here won’t do that on a regular basis because they say if he uses them to harm himself they’ll be held accountable

Which I understand completely. They’re almost a year into the diagnosis and he did do the driving around thing for a while, but he doesn’t have time for that now

I always thought you could only get prescriptions for things you couldn't buy over the counter tbh

Though I did know that gps give prescriptions for things like piriton/eye drops if the DC are too young to have them over the counter or to bring on a plane/show to nursery.

Oh and excema cream, DH goes through so much of it he can get a prescription but you can buy the same one over the counter.

You should buy your own pain meds. A few quid from Aldi/Lidl/supermarket. Hope you’re both feeling better soon. Any prescriptions over a prolonged period are cheaper with a pre payment card.

In your position I would only have got the inhaler and antibiotics on prescription, and bought paracetmol and nurofen over the counter. That would have been less than £20. Still a lot of money of course. To be honest, I've done without antibiotics in the past because I couldn't afford them, and luckily managed to recover, though it took a lot longer of course. And that does include when I had young children to look after. Life gets tough sometimes.
My daughter is on 4 medications, some of them need repeating monthly. She has a prepay direct debit, I think that's very good value.

I think the OP has a point. If the ill ses is a one off it's not worth getting a PPC and £35 is a lot of money if you are not well off.

I think the discrepancy between some long term conditions where prescriptions are free and others are not is unfair.

Also the way it's free in Scotland and Wales, not in England.

I do have a PPC as otherwise I'd be on about £54 a month. I'd happily pay more tax to make prescriptions free. Chronic Illness is a financial drain in itself, for the individual and the economy in terms of productivity, benefits etc.

A disincentive to treatment compliance is a false economy for the country, and short sighted.

@stuckinthemiddlewithtwats I was at a GP practice before with crap GPs.

What I found is some people didn't and still don't believe me that certain experienced staff members where exhibiting racism and sexism in their treatment of me. Funnily enough some of the people who do believe me are other doctors due to how they have been treated by other medical staff who haven't realised they are senior doctors.

90% prescriptions free? How does that work.50% of the population don’t pay anything and 9 times out of 10 I’m never given free meds.

Clearly some are getting a bargain. Others who don’t have a crystal ball aren’t and I think the system needs modernising. I’ll happily pay less tax and national insurance like other countries who pay more for meds.

You do realise how HEAVILY subsidised NHS medicines are?

If you voted for anyone other than Labour, be prepared to be paying a lot more in the next few years.

90% prescriptions free? How does that work

The people who need them most are the same ones who are entitled to free prescriptions, the elderly, children and people with chronic conditions.

Healthy working people who are required to pay also need fewer prescriptions.

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/society/2018/mar/03/nhs-prescription-charges-rise-drugs

Some of the data here is slightly old but it explains the 90%.

@Radi0t1me5 are you deliberately ignoring the 3 month pre payment certificate? It's less than £30 and would save your dh a fortune. I understand getting dressings prescribed is a nightmare, spent 5 months needing them.

I’ll happily pay less tax and national insurance like other countries who pay more for meds.

Which is fine if you need something cheap. What about the people who need a £600 per tablet medication? Are they left to die!

So he was supposed to guess in advance their screw up.

We could afford £30 a month but pretty sure many couldn’t. Paying for dressings at such a cost is appalling. Had to talk dh out of rationing them.

Utterly shite system.

Surely you knew he would need more than one prescription for dressings? Wounds take a while to heal. If you even think you'll need more than 3 prescriptions in 3 months then the certificate is worth it.

Also how would paying for them have been cheaper?

I can see that you're frustrated with having to pay, if you didn't know about the pre payment certificate then that's annoying for you. But there are cheaper ways out there.

£30 for dressings is probably cheaper than buying them. Especially if you had to have the wound care kit with saline etc prescribed as well.

And you are totally unreasonable to want ordinary painkillers in prescription. Totally abusing the NHS.

My inhaler costs the NHS a fortune. I feel incredibly lucky I can have it for £9.

The NHS is going under because people want calpol on it. Buy own brand stuff it’s cheaper than the paper for a prescription.

If you knew what antibiotic and steroids cost you’d be thrilled to have been lucky enough to live in the UK and get them as cheap as you did.

We had no idea there would be screw up warranting a wound.

We have always paid for everything so why would we?

To the poster who’s friend has terminal cancer. Sorry I didn’t note your name and it is several pages to scroll back.
If in England All cancer treatment meds are free. Even paracetamol. If your friend hasn’t done so she needs to apply for an exemption certificate. The doctor will print one off and sign it. The form is called a FP92A.

I have a chronic illness but am exempt from payment, however, my gp showed me the cost of my meds, I could ask to take 3 tablets a day costing the nhs £140 per month, or take the same medication using smaller tablets and have the 'inconvience' of taking 6 tablets a day at a cost of £46, I am so very grateful that I have had free, fantastic medical at the point I needed it (and ongoing) I am more than happy to take the cheaper pills, I think people should be made aware of the costs and the choices we have. so yes OP yabu.

I totally understand that if you're not used to getting prescriptions, don't have repeats etc, £35 as a one off payment is a big, unexpected chunk out of your budget.

I suffer from severe migraines, eczema and asthma. I get 2 types of painkillers, other migraine meds, preventatives, 2 different inhalers, eczema creams. The migraine meds I need to order every month, and I've just put in a repeat for 6 items. If I didn't have a prepayment card, I just couldn't afford it. The prepayment card is definitely worth it, even if you're normally ingod health, you could get a 3 month one now, claim back what you've just spent and it would cover anything else you might get over the worst of the germ season. Hope you feel better soon.

I’ll happily pay less tax and national insurance like other countries who pay more for meds.

I pay a bucket tonne of tax and NI, but I couldn't afford to buy all the medication I have each year. It would cost me thousands of pounds.

Some medications don't cost £9, no.
Some cost upwards of £100+
Would you rather pay a flat rate or market price?

Put it into perspective- for £35 you got:
a doctors appointment and advice
three medications for you, and two for your child
Advice from pharmacist if needed/wanted now or in the future.
Bargin!

My DH has cancer and pays for pain management meds and dressings. Is that not right?

@Gammeldragz This. I have epilepsy so get free prescriptions. I feel that I should get my epilepsy meds free - people do die during seizures. But I really don't feel I'm entitled to all my prescriptions free, if they're not epilepsy related. Also, my aunt had parkinsons and hers weren't free, even though her condition was totally debilitating (she had young-onset so wasn't retired, and was not entitled to benefits). There is no common sense in the current system.

daisypond he should be able to apply for a medical exemption certificate.
www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/exemption-certificates/medical-exemption-certificates

I think it's clearly wrong that the Scots and welsh have free prescriptions but not the English