It is not often that I bare my soul to a public audience but, like most men of my age, my GP has prescribed statins and ace-inhibitors to control my cholesterol and blood pressure. There are millions like me all over the country who, subject only to a six monthly check up, trot over to the local pharmacy when necessary to replenish stocks for the medicine cupboard.
But no amount of ace-inhibitors could have stopped me from reacting the way I did when I popped over to my local chemist this week. Usually I am prescribed two months supply. Each prescribed medication costs £7.20, so I am faced with a bill of £14.40 every couple of months. But this time I was “allowed” only one month’s supply.
At a stroke (pardon the pun but so nearly true) my drug costs have doubled. Why? Because according to my pharmacist, the local PCT has instructed that all prescribed drugs be limited to one months supply in order - wait for it - to reduce wastage.
I despair! For me this is not about money but the principle. This is logic of the mad house. It cannot be right for an unelected, unaccountable and unseen PCT to levy such a massive hike in charges for those who need prescribed medication.
What next? A fortnight’s supply and then a week’s supply? This is not a stealth tax; it is deliberately designed permanently to deprive patients of their money. It is tax by stealing.
I see some loan shark got a few years in jail for ripping clients off and demanding extortionate charges. After the trial one of his victims said: “These people prey on people’s misfortune.” How true!
Tags: Prescription charges
Why am I not surprised? Some years ago we had an ‘edict’ that we hospital practitionbers could only order one week’s supply of drugs even though the patient might need them for longer (notably for chronic illnesse like TB and Rheumatoid Arthritis); of course the patient then had to ‘trouble’ their GP to get a more realistic prescription - and had to pay again if they were not entitled to ‘free’ drugs!
Once upon a time (and this is no fairy tale) a doctor wrote a prescription that was appropriate for that particular patient; it was a legal document and NO ONE - certainly not a layman - could countermand it. Who says they were not “the good old days”! How has the profession become so docile as to allow this sort of interference in ‘clinical matters’ - just to please some bureaucrat determining which budget it should come out of, so (s)he can balance the books?
If one needs drugs as a prophylactic against serious illnesses (that could cost the NHS a lot of money), one needs to continue taking them for the rest of one’s life. So, why are they not treated the same as drugs used for the ‘management’ (not cure) of chronic conditions (such as diabetes)? Retired Orthopod. Swindon
I have just found out having collected what I thought was two months supply to find it was only one. I agree word for word with Stephen Campion, fortunately I am over the age of 60 and therefore have escaped this scandelous increase but feel for those that have fallen into this category. Can you imagine the public outrage if the government had the guts to make a public announcement that they were going to double prescription charges. I now have to apply 12 times a year for my repeat prescription instead of 6 and I am sure my local surgery is unhappy with double the amount of paperwork.