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How much medicine should you expect in one prescription?
TopRenegade
Posts: 2 Newbie
I have hayfever which affects me approx. 6 months of the year (starting around now as it happens). When I visit the doctor, sometimes he gives my a prescription for 4 weeks of hayfever tablets, sometimes its 8 weeks worth of tablets. Obviously I prefer a prescription for 8 weeks as it saves me money. Ideally though I'd like a prescription for 6 months - that's how long I need to take the things and then I'd save even more on prescription charges. OK, the 6 month thing is unlikely but what is the rule on this? - should I expect a prescription to last a month before I have to pay for another, or 2 months? Should it depend on the condition? Maybe you should only have enough tablets for 2 weeks? My point is - who makes these rules - or are there none - how can we tell if things are fair?
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There's no "rule" as such. The surgery has to balance you having enough to treat your condition with justifying the amount they've given. A huge amount of medicines are wasted when people start a course of meds then stop or get changed to something else, so they tend not to give very big quantities. You can get a prescription prepayment form (a "season ticket") that might save you money if you regularly have prescriptions. The form is available at pharmacies.0
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I have no idea who decides how many pills etc we get on a prescription. I assume its the doctors we see at the time. When my back problem was at its worse and I needed medication sometimes I got enough pills for a month but if I saw a different doc the next time I asked for them to give me the most pills as possible at once to save me money as I wasn't working at the time and only getting SSP. He was very good and I think I got about 4-5 months worth.
I have no idea how much they cost but would it be worth you getting a 6 month pre-paid certificate? My Dad does this but then he's on heart meds for life. Might be worth looking into.:heart2: Love isn't finding someone you can live with. It's finding someone you can't live without :heart2:0 -
It is not quite worth my while getting one of those prepay things. It's interesting though that there are apparently no rules and it is down to the doctor to decide how much money you are going to stump up in a year. I'm not complaining about my own situation really but I think this sounds potentially unfair.0
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My doctor gives a month at a time but on a repeat prescription basis which restarts as soon as it ends. So I am covered for 6 months (or longer if needed) but do have to pay every month. Since I'm in Wales, the prescription price is low so having to pay each month isn't too bad. Besides, I remember a time when I used to be prescribed only a week or two at a time (but that was many years ago).0
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Dont know if this is appropriate for you, but I used to have an injection at the beginning of April which served me throughout the season (I never paid for this, was given it by the nurse) havent had it for a few years due to pregnancies and breast feeding. Personally it was fantastic, used to really suffer for months on end.
HTH Love Ali0 -
Generally GPs are 'advised' to prescribe one month's worth of tablets at a time, although they are free to adjust this period if they want to. If you are going on holiday for example most doctors will give you enough to cover this.
Also most doctors will want to see you occossionally to review your condition,even if you are getting repeat prescriptions without having to see the doctor most of the time.
Regards,
Art.0 -
I used to have a Kenalog injection which was brilliant and took away all my symptoms....however none of the surgeries use it anymore and I now have the same problem with prescriptions for only 4 weeks.............0
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I take 2 different painkillers and get 60 tablets in each prescription; one will last me roughly 2 weeks, the other will last me for several months. I have a prepayment certificate which saves me around £7/month, and my prescriptions are reviewed every year with the doctor.The ability of skinny old ladies to carry huge loads is phenomenal. An ant can carry one hundred times its own weight, but there is no known limit to the lifting power of the average tiny eighty-year-old Spanish peasant grandmother.0
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I recently got four tables on one prescription! :rotfl: But that was to see me through the night as I had to go back to hospital the next day to get checked out!Signature removed for peace of mind0
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My doctor kindly gives me 3mths at a time , its for two different tablets so instead of me paying £39.00 I get them for £13.00 quite a saving.. I don't see that its any skin off their nose to give you more than a month at a time... But I suppose they have their reasons... It is also on a repeat prescription basis so I can usually repeat the prescription 4 or 5 times before the doc needs to see me again, unless of course I feel the need to have a checkup#6 of the SKI-ers Club :j
"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing" Edmund Burke0
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