Lady delighted as plan to alter free prescription age scrapped
Following months of parliamentary debate and public petitions, the proposals to align the higher age exemption for NHS prescription fees with the state pension age, which is at present 66, have been dominated out.
The Department of Health and Social Care, which led the session, introduced the upper-age exemption will stay frozen at 60 for the foreseeable to ease the rising value pressures persons are going through up and down the nation.
The determination, introduced yesterday, has confirmed in style, with many branding the transfer as “sensible” in addition to highlighting the numerous influence it’ll have on their funds.
Jacky Flood, 62, Chesham, instructed Express.co.uk: “I’m really pleased with the news. I stopped paying for prescriptions when I turned 60.
“As you get older, you get more ailments and need more medication. I take medication daily now. If I had to start paying for prescriptions again, I wouldn’t be able to afford them, especially with how much they cost now.”
READ MORE: Huge boost for over 60s as free prescription age is frozen at 60
Express reader, lordrobert, commented: “At last, something sensible.” Alison2015 mentioned: “I’d say nowadays most individuals over 60 are working to make ends meet because the pensionable age is 66 in the meanwhile.”
Alison2015 continued: “It does make sense, seeing as health problems do tend to appear the older you get, to make access to medication required easy so that people can continue to work up to 66.”
Commenting on the news, Neil O’Brien, the minister for health said: “This Government recognises the pressures with the cost of living caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We have decided to maintain the prescription exemption age where it is. Nine out of 10 prescriptions are already free at the point of use and on top of that we also provide financial help to others on low incomes who don’t automatically get prescriptions for free.”
Laura Cockram, chair of the Prescription Charges Coalition and head of policy and campaigns for Parkinson’s UK said she was relieved the proposals would not go ahead.
She said: “We are pleased to hear the UK Government is scrapping this plan. We know this is a false economy as making people pay for prescriptions can actually cost the NHS more in the long term. And we know this policy would have put financial pressure on an older population which we fear could have had disastrous consequences for their health.
“However abandoning this unpopular plan doesn’t address the underlying problem that the prescription charge exemption system needs to be reviewed urgently. It is putting the health of patients at risk which we fear will intensify as the charges increase.
“Right now, people are having to make very difficult choices about whether they feed their families, pay bills or take their medication, which is essential for them staying well. Instead, the charges force unwell people to rely more on the NHS, which is already at breaking point.
“The UK Government’s bid to create a healthier nation will fail if it doesn’t commit to reviewing the outdated prescription charge exemption list.”
Ian Budd, prescriber and scientific lead at Chemist4U additionally welcomed the news, saying: “It will grant peace of thoughts to sufferers who’re most in want and will have been worrying about an additional value to take care of on high of rising family payments.
“Those who aren’t eligible without cost prescriptions should not be too dissatisfied although, as prescription prepayment certificates (PPCs) can even assist to scale back the price of your month-to-month prescriptions, particularly for many who want three or extra prescriptions a month.”
Prepayment certificates (PPC) can be found to assist with frequent prescriptions, ought to they be required.
PPCs cowl all prescriptions at a set value and customarily save folks cash in the event that they want greater than three gadgets in three months or 11 gadgets in 12 months. This is as a result of whereas a prescription usually prices £9.65 per merchandise, a PPC prices £31.25 for 3 months, and £111.60 for 12 months.