Carers UK Forum

I am really concerned to read that from 1st April 2022 that the over 60.s will have to pay for their medications
Absolutely no way can i afford £30.00 per month for this, I have been an unpaid carer for the last 37 years not looking after 1 but 3 Members of my household all with different disabilities,I only get Carers allowance of £67.00, Carers save the goverment billions every year if we become severly ill who on earth is going to look after our loved one,s.

This might help Karen

https://services.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/buy-pres ... cate/start

£30ish for 3 months.

https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/prescri ... criptions/

See the above link that hasn't been updated as yet. But shows people with certain medical conditions are currently exempt.
Not sure if these exemptions will continue to apply. If you currently have any of these exemptions (not everyone knows and chemists don't always inform people). Speak to your pharmacy.

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/our-impact/cam ... year-olds/

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/594390

Protect free NHS prescriptions for over 60s
Continue to give free NHS prescriptions to over 60s. The Government is consulting on aligning the upper age exemption for NHS prescription charges with the State Pension age (SPA), which would render many people in their 60s ineligible.

More details
Over 60s are generally more susceptible to health issues, and after pension age, have less money available to pay large sums for repeated prescriptions.

Just to be clear that this is not yet decided. It went out to consultation, which closed in September. So far there's been no actual decision.

I think all the media coverage is the government testing the water, given the recent political situation and government popularity nosedive. The reaction has so far been pretty negative overall, so I'd go for signing the petition to make it abundantly clear to the government that this is a wrong turning.

If they were to introduce it in April, though, the hit on the council elections in May would probably not be good news. I think if they do introduce it, they'll do it later in the year.

But then, I'm not this government, thankfully.

I think that the proposal is that the age of eligibility for free prescriptions will be raised to statutory retirement age, i.e. 66. People already over 60 but not yet 66 will not have their free prescriptions revoked.

As usual, the media are flexible with the truth and details, and make things out to be worse than they actually are.

Government responded

Read the response

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/594390

So basically it would cost them only £600m a year (actually, about £800m because people denying themselves prescriptions on cost grounds are not counted) to make prescriptions free. For everyone.

Only it wouldn't.

For a start, they also claim that over £200m of "free" prescriptions are fraudulently claimed. That would be wiped out and the bureaucracy costs involved in picking up the fraud and dealing with it would be saved.

There would be fewer regulations, with no need for people to complete forms for exempted prescriptions, no delays, no hassle.

Just "need meds? Have a prescription." No stress, no worry, nothing.

But you can bet that the only reason there's been no decision on this is that it's a vote loser at a time when the government is at its least popular for years.

They can so easily wipe off Covid related scams that cost millions.