Latest updates
27th February 2008
Prescription costs are barrier to health says Citizens Advice
New research carried out by Ipsos MORI for national charity
Citizens Advice reveals that around 800,000 people failed to
collect a prescription last year in England because of the cost
involved.
The charity warns that not being able to afford prescription
charges means many poorer people with chronic health problems
are not getting the treatment they need and are putting their
health at risk.
Citizens Advice is calling on the Department of Health to stop
stalling and carry out the review of prescription charging in
England, first recommended by the Health Select Committee over
18 months ago. The longer the government fails to look into the
issue, says Citizens Advice, the more people in England are
going without prescriptions they need. This latest figure shows
there has been no improvement since 2001 when Ipsos MORI carried
out a similar survey for the charity.
Citizens Advice adds that the situation will only get worse when
the Employment Support Allowance replaces Incapacity Benefit for
new claimants from October this year as this will result in more
people on low incomes and in poor health also losing automatic
entitlement to free prescriptions.
Citizens Advice Chief Executive David Harker said:
"We first raised this problem in 2001, yet seven years later
the number of people failing to cash a prescription because they
can’t afford it has remained unchanged."
"And although the Government says it recognises the links
between poverty and ill health, the Department of Health’s
extraordinary delay in starting the consulting process has
resulted in hundreds of thousands of people not being able to
afford the treatments they need. Progress in Wales and Scotland
has raised the stakes. It is simply unacceptable that people are
still failing to collect prescriptions because they can’t afford
it. It is essential that there is now urgent action to finally
eliminate prescription poverty in England."
The Health Select Committee first recommended that a review be
undertaken in July 2006, but the Department took a further year
before announcing in July 2007 that it would consult on reform
“in the autumn”.
Case studies
A CAB in Hampshire saw a man who was receiving long term
medication. He was on a low income with learning difficulties
and unable to read. He was told that he was exempt from charges
but then received a prescription penalty charge notice for
£79.80 and then a final action letter for £113.05. The man only
had limited payment options but was told he had to pay
outstanding fines.
A CAB saw a single man who had been receiving Incapacity Benefit
(IB) for over 4 years. In the first two years he was eligible
for free prescriptions. After two years he was no longer
entitled to free prescriptions because his income exceeded the
allowed excess of half the current cost of a prescription,
£3.43. His prescription cost was £13.70 per month and he was
worried about the cost of the new medicines which his doctor
might prescribe.
A CAB in Hertfordshire saw a woman under 25 who was in receipt
of incapacity benefit and disability living allowance. She
needed at least two prescriptions per fortnight, but because of
her age and circumstances, she was not entitled to help with
prescription costs. She could not afford to pay for a
pre-payment certificate in one go.