GP halved my prescriptions without warning, now paying double per month

[Redimpulse]

I've recently had my two medications halved by the GP. One prescription has gone from 30 to 15 tablets and the other from 28 to 14 tablets. I wasn't consulted about this and had no warning. It also means I'm basically paying almost £40 for what was almost £20! I'm house bound so not able to work and don't get any benefits so am paying out of my savings. Is this actually legal, it seems they can make up the rules as they go along, has this happened to anyone else? I was livid when I found out.

Probably. I have diazepam on repeat prescription but it was initially prescribed by a psychiatrist and now reissued by the GP. I'm autistic and use it PRN if I need to 'reboot my computer'. I've used it responsibly for years now and only request it if I need it. I find it loses its effect anyway if used for more than a couple of days.

How long have you had 2 prescriptions a month for? For every year you’ve had 2, you’ve paid more than £100 more than you needed too by not having pre-payment certificate!

Clearly she knows this. She is saying that she’s now getting 2 weeks supply of each per item, meaning her cost per month has doubled as she has to order the meds every 2 weeks instead.

OP - definitely get a prepayment certificate as it’s cheaper if you need more than 1 prescription per month anyway. You pay a single monthly amount (more than the cost of 1 prescription but less than the cost of 2) and it covers everything you are prescribed, not just repeat meds. You should also contact the drs and ask for a phone call medication review to discuss why they have changed the amount issued at a time.

When did you buy tablets online? If you’ve been doing that already, your GP may have been notified, and are reducing your quantities. But basically you need to arrange an appointment.

Ask for a medication review and blood tests

If you're housebound, ask for home visits

GPs are duty bound to review patients and their meds at least once a year or more often if the patient is on controlled drugs and not let a patient carry on for years without a checkup

Def pre-payment.
For certain conditions you can get a medical exemption certificate - I do cos I’ve got epilepsy. Look it up to see the categories. My Dr never mentioned it but I looked it up.

Have you tried applying for a HC2 @Redimpulse ? If eligible you will get free prescriptions and eye tests. Ask for or print off form HC1, fill it out and hopefully you'll get one.
If you aren't, then I'd also suggest a prepayment certificate.
Can you get your medication delivered? My dds are pretty much housebound and get theirs delivered from Pharmacy 2 U.

Sorry OP, but this is some weird math. So, people who get 120 tablets of whatever medication they’re on should pay more? Because they get 120, and you only get 30? You’re not paying double; you’re paying the agreed charge for a single prescription. I want to help you figure this out, because I’d be stressed if I were you too, but could you be clear - have the doctors actually halved your dose randomly, or are you just getting a prescription that only lasts two weeks due to an issue with your doctor? And once again, are either of these prescriptions controlled drugs? You absolutely do NOT have to share the answer to either of these questions; I’m just saying that these kinds of things happen much more often with controlled drugs, with GPs in a surgery not speaking to each other or not putting all the “notes” of a verbal appointment in the computer. It’s nobody’s fault; these drugs are dangerous, which is why they’re controlled, and these policies are to keep you safe. They may also only be giving you a two-week supply if you have recently refilled it too early, but they should have spoken to you about that. Also, I just saw that you said you’ve had to buy tablets online. That’s a bit of a red flag to GPs, I would assume.

Are the GPs visiting you if you’re housebound? I know it can be SO very difficult to get medical care when you need it to come to you and you can’t go to it, so I’m sure this is stress you don’t need.

In recent years I have had so much trouble with my surgery (no idea if it is the pharmacist, the GP or someone else) changing my medication without any warning or discussion, ordering repeat medication without my knowledge, (even though they have had a letter from my consultant telling them it has been changed or stopped), or just randomly stopping medication. I logged into my repeat list last month only to find that someone had ordered all but one of the meds, including 3 that the consultant stopped in November. The order goes straight to the pharmacy and once they have dispensed everything they won't take anything back - it has to be thrown away.
They don't respond to messages in the website, or emails. It is so wasteful and expensive.
I am sorry OP. The least they could do would be to communicate with you.