Prescription charges frozen to keep them under a tenner
Prescription charges on the NHS are being frozen for the first time in three years – keeping them below a tenner.
The government has announced the move to keep the cost at its current level of £9.90 for patients in England, which will prevent it breaching the £10 mark.
Three-month and annual prescriptions prepayment certificates are also being frozen for the coming year.
Those who already do not have to pay for their prescription – including children, over-60s, pregnant women and people with certain medical conditions – will continue to avoid the costs.
Around 89% of prescriptions in England are currently handed out for free under this scheme.
Speaking to Metro, Health Minister Stephen Kinnock said: ‘Hardworking Metro readers will not pay a penny more for their prescriptions this year because we’ve taken the decision to freeze prescription charges for the first time in three years to keep them below a tenner, saving patients around £18 million in total.
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‘This is on top of our recent £617 million boost for community pharmacies, as we shift care out of hospitals and into the community through our Plan for Change.
‘Thanks to the record investment in health and social care of £26 billion at the Budget, we’re making our NHS fit for the future while putting money back in people’s pockets.’
Prescription charges in England have increased by £1.85 in the past ten years, though they were frozen under Health Secretary Sajid Javid in 2022.
No other part of the UK charges fees for prescriptions – with the Labour-run government in Wales scrapping them 18 years ago.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘Fixing our NHS will be a long road – but by working closer with our pharmacies we’re saving money and shifting care to the community where it’s closer to your home.
‘We made the difficult but necessary choices at the Budget to fund moves like this and change our NHS so it can once again be there for you when you need it.’
Jonathan Blades, the head of policy at Asthma + Lung UK, described the move as a ‘welcome first step’ which will ‘provide some short-term relief for people with young conditions’ during the cost-of-living crisis.
He said: ‘Living with a long-term lung condition like asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is expensive and rising prescription costs only make it harder for people to manage their condition and stay well.’
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