AIBU to think a pharmacist should know contraception is prescription exempt?

[TutTutTutSigh]

I collected my contraception from the chemist today and the pharmacist asked if I pay for my prescriptions. I said yes, but this is contraception so it's exempt. He said "is it, I don't know." I was a bit taken aback and said yes! He said ok I didn't know that but I believe you.. whilst looking at me like I was trying to trick him.

AIBU to think a pharmacist should know this?

And would you email the chemist just to mention it?

Its not even lying because no matter the primary cause it will still potentially used at somepoint as contraception if you are on it long term which most women are.

I can't see how it could be proven either way. I was on the pill for hormone related migraine. It wasn't until I'd changed surgery that I was told I'd have to pay because of why I use it (I'm exempt from prescription charges for other reasons)

How can anyone know that the prescription is being used for a different purpose though? A prescription doesn't have the condition it’s for written on it, it just states the name of the drug and the dose. In my many years of taking the Pill I’ve never been asked what it’s for - even when I took it for 5 years after being sterilised!

Why would you even be asked the question???

@OnTheBoardwalk Cerelle IS a mini-pill because it contains only progesterone, it's the generic version of Cerazette. You do have to take it everyday and there are no pill free days with a mini-pill.
The reason people will be taken off a combined pill (which is one which has an estrogen and a progesterone and which you can take a 7 day pill free break to induce a withdrawal bleed but you don't have to - eg Microgynon, Yasmin etc) is to do with increased risk of clotting with a combination pill and increased age, nothing to do with the reason why you are taking it, many women take (and should do) a contraceptive right up until they have completed menopause, even in conjunction with HRT.

I can't comment on the payment as we got rid of prescription charges about 15 years ago (England is the only part of the UK to charge now) but when we did I wouldn't have charged for a pill unless it was Dianette and it specifically said it was for skin because it had another licensed indication for treatment of acne.

(Source I am a pharmacist)

“If you’re in England, it depends on why the medicine is prescribed.

• If a contraceptive pill is prescribed for contraception, it’s free on the NHS.
• If the same pill is prescribed solely to treat a skin condition, such as acne, it is generally treated like a normal NHS prescription, so the usual prescription charge applies unless you’re exempt from paying (for example, because of your age, income, pregnancy, or another exemption).”

The prescriber is supposed to indicate on the prescription that it’s for a non-contraceptive use. Similar, if a non-contraceptive drug is used for contraception, the the gp should endorse the prescription saying it’s for contraceptive use.

Exactly @Gateappreciation thank you

im not going to lie and say it’s for contraception when it’s not. I want it linked to my medical condition as diagnosed by the GP and the hospital and in my notes

after having years of trying things out, hospital visits and drs wanting to change/stop other medications and pills for random reasons this works for me and my condition

i had a dr telling me age 13 don’t worry it’ll be ok once you’ve had a baby, Drs not telling me you don’t have to have a monthly break on the normal pill each month, Drs telling me I been on the pill too long I need to take a break and all sorts of things

ive been on Cerelle for 10 years with no periods at all and look to stay on it for many years to come. The last GP wanted me to ‘have a break’ but the hospital actually put it was a long term solution for me

Sorry, I don't understand. I was just saying that your post was copied and pasted from an AI response.

Which is completely irrelevant

as I said there probably just in the habit of asking when the give out a prescription rather than looking at what it is and what’s it for

And has been said before Depo does not have a contraception marker on it so he wouldn’t know what was in the bag

Much ado about nothing

He may simply have never done a script for contraception before, as he may be fairly new to the profession? Or he worked in a hospital/prison pharmacy before only dispensing certain drugs? If he wasn't the named pharmacist on the wall he may have been a very inexperienced locum. They obviously should know. But now hopefully he's learned something!

Usually but not always - can be prescribed for endometriosis and menorrhagia too, and then chargeable.

@OnTheBoardwalk Cerelle IS a mini pill as the pharmacist previously posted. Now referred to as POPs, progesterone only pills - Cerelle, Cerazette, or generically desogestrel. You should never have to pay for these regardless of the reason for using it.

Depo-provera DOES have a contraception use and no other, so is never chargeable.

Depo-medrone is different, as are antipsychotic depot injections….

@sidge no you are incorrect. They are only free if being used for contraceptive purpose I use them for a medical situation. I also know it’s the mini pill as I’ve been taking it for 10 years

i give up on this thread, so many people just taking google AI as fact

faq.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/knowledgebase/article/KA-01415/en-us

There’s a list of free contraceptives listed in part 10 of Part XVI of the Drug Tariff.
All items on this list are automatically exempt from a prescription charge.
There are other products not listed in the Drug Tariff, which can be given as a free of charge contraceptive.
A prescriber must mark the item with the female symbol or endorse the item in another way which makes it clear the prescription is for contraceptive purposes.
The prescriber could do this by endorsing:

• the female symbol ♀
• contraceptive
• CC
• CU
• OC

If there’s no endorsement by the prescriber, the normal prescription charge will apply. For EPS2 prescriptions, the prescriber must include the endorsement ‘CC’ in the ‘Prescriber Endorsement’ field. This is for all items which are for contraceptive purposes, but not automatically exempt.

It's irrelevant whether you're using it as a contraceptive or not. It's still free. You shouldn't be paying for it.

No it’s not!!! Some ‘contraceptives’ that can be used for other purposes, are payable when used for that other purpose. Similarly, some non- contraceptives, when used for contraceptive purposes, are free-of-charge,

Incorrect about which bit? This is literally part of my job.

Electronic prescriptions for contraceptive medications such as POPs are automatically endorsed as CC as the default (on my clinical system anyway) so if you're telling them it's for menorrhagia and being charged then maybe you need to have a conversation with your prescriber and ask them to endorse it so you don't get charged. I'd be surprised if they had removed the endorsement.

Items such as co-cyprindiol (Dianette) are not automatically endorsed so needs adding manually - that's because they shouldn't now be used as contraceptives routinely. There aren't many non-contraceptive meds used for contraception - that's the only one I can think of off the top of my head.

Yes of course they should know. Basic training once in a direct customer facing role (as opposed to working in a hospital) I would have thought.

However, if it's being used for another reason then maybe the exemption doesn't apply - I didn't know that but I am not a pharmacist. The Depo injection was used for something else before being used as contraception (I only read that yesterday in a fascinating book by Louise Newson called the Power of Hormones).

She also mentioned that virtually every form of hormonal contraception has side effects. I was actually surprised she thought women didn't know that as I wasn't happy being on it back in the 90s!