Prescription charges for over 60s

[herewegogc]

Just found out that there is a government consultation going on about this. The aim is to raise the age for free prescriptions to the state pension age. Ends on 1st September. AIBU to be unhappy that this is being done by stealth? Or have I missed the massive publicity campaign? Fill in the consultation here: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/aligning-the-upper-age-for-nhs-prescription-charge-exemptions-with-the-state-pension-age

I was earning almost six figures in my early 60s, it was absolutely absurd that I shouldn’t pay prescription charges. Alignment with state pension age is eminently sensible.

Next up - child benefit. Why pay Child Benefit to people who choose to have children - after all, if you can afford to have children surely you can pay for your prescription charges, pregnancy care etc etc ...............it's the dismantling of the Welfare State and turning people in on each other.

Well CB is means tested now whereas my parents received it regardless. I think it's fine to invest in children, there really aren't that many of them. The median age is already 40

People who have worked and paid tax all their lives are the ones to first be denied access to a service they paid into.

I'm not sure it's ironic just more of a mathematical calculation that people are living longer & we have more old people.

Maybe those who haven't worked or paid in enough tax should be the ones to hit ie the young?

Plenty of pensioners won't have paid enough tax in regardless if they worked or not. You can't keep targeting young people, & why do you assume they don't work or pay tax?

This makes sense, seeing I am 59.

Everyone wants better services in this country but no one wants to pay for it & I never understood the Tory love.

I'd love to see means testing for all. I say that as someone who wouldn't qualify for free prescriptions for children etc if they did.

I'm not sure how that would work though. You want to tell a younger person that they will be paying more income tax, more for their education & housing, more for their pension. Then that there state pension will move even further out & if they can afford to have kids all benefits will be removed. I just think fertility rates will reduce even more.

I’d be happy with them being free for all and with higher taxes for eg higher rate taxpayers (which includes me) to pay for them.

Are you talking about just income? so how much extra are you happy to pay?

The absolute truth is you wanted lockdowns to suit yourselves so you didn't have to go to work be it furlough or wfh.

I'm not sure anyone who was furloughed had much choice in the matter. I'm a key worker & had to wfh. Lockdown was shit.

The TFL "free" travel for over 60s isn't completely free. You pay £20 for a year, so a bargain bug not completely free. You only get them completely free at 65,

Bug is but.

@rookiemere

Exactly *@Binnaggy* I think the younger generation are more miffed to see gold plated pensions and rolls Royce NHS treatment that they no will not be available for them when they finally get to retire at a much later age than current retirees.

What Rolls Royce NHS treatment? There’s no such thing. And the only people getting anything close to gold plated pensions are those who’ve paid into occupational schemes. The state pension - with a minimum of 35 years contributions - is £137.60 a week. Perhaps some of the “miffed” should try living on that.

Makes sense, just like they did with bus passes

Funnily enough I went to pick up my monthly prescription this week only to be told I now don't have to pay (I turned 60 a couple of weeks ago). I was really shocked as I assumed I only got free prescriptions when I reached my state pension age of 67. On the one hand I think well I have been paying my NI for 47 years so I am entitled to it but I have to confess it makes me feel uncomfortable as I can afford my £11 prescription charge each month. I like the idea of a previous poster who donated the money back to the community and think I might look at doing something similar.

@Boredmotherofone clearly not bored enough to read posts properly!!

@itsasin77

Pension credit is means tested as is council tax assistance. If she qualifies she cannot have much more than the state pension coming in

@Blossomtoes the state pension is not a huge sum but it has got the triple lock for inflation. Doubt that will be there by the time I retire or that the state pension won't be means tested.

As for the NHS my well off elderly DPs expect it to supply and pay for everything- even stuff they could easily pay for themselves like ear wax removal. DM gets bumped up waiting queues by persistently phoning up the admin team for the consultant.

I doubt anything bar the absolute basics will exist in a few years and yet everyone still pays their NI which allegedly covers all this.

@Blossomtoes I don't expect the nhs to exist in its current form when i'm older. i'm already paying for something privately because the waiting lists are so long but not everyone has that privilege. My private pension is ok but it has massively changed over the years. I couldn't opt into any earlier as I was still in school.

The state pension - with a minimum of 35 years contributions

out of interest were minimum contributions always a thing?

The triple lock is currently (rightly) in jeopardy but, even if it wasn’t, £137.60 is hardly “gold plated”. Those of us receiving occupational pensions are still tax payers.

Just because some people have sharp elbows doesn’t make the NHS a Rolls Royce service, it’s pretty rubbish for most people. I paid for my cataract surgery because I’d have gone blind by the time I reached the top of the list and ear wax removal hasn’t been available on the NHS where I live for years.

I absolutely hate this inter generational sniping, all based on anecdote.

I do agree that the state pension is in no way gold plated

I absolutely hate this inter generational sniping, all based on anecdote.

I think the gov encourages the sniping but I do think there is intergenerational inequality statistically. A lot of it is bad planning & lack of investment by successive governments, unfortunately we are an "older" country which is no ones fault, it's life but we need to effectively address it & manage it.

Nooooo! I've just turned 60 and I've been paying for prescriptions for a lifelong chronic condition (but not life threatening) for 45yrs. I've spent upwards of 25k over the years. Not having to pay for prescriptions was one of the sweeteners of turning 60.

@nokidshere why don't you have a certificate?

@rottd I have had for the past 5yrs or so but never really did it when I was younger because I was lucky enough to be able to afford them and never really thought about it.

That's a lot of money to not miss!