Ridicilous cost of an inhaler!

Snowwhite1123

First of all i checked the lloyds website and found the inhaler i was after, the ventolin 100mg/dose, 200 dose inhaler at £3.46. So i took my prescription to another pharmacy that i assumed was cheaper and they charged me a whoppin £7.20!

I then later found out that lloyds do it for £5, i guess nextime im just going to say im exempt, i have done this before and i doubt they will check it, the people at the pharmacy never even ask for proof anyway!

Well this inhaler better last long...

dzug1

If it's on prescription you should be charged the fixed prescription fee (£7.20) regardless of the 'cost' of the item.

If it's a non-prescription item then you can buy it over the counter at whatever the chemist charges. Tear up the prescription and throw it away - you don't need it.

VfM4meplse

dzug1 wrote: »

If it's a non-prescription item then you can buy it over the counter at whatever the chemist charges.

Salbutamol is a POM (Pescription Only Medicine) so there are no deals to be done if you want to be treated on the NHS.

If you are truly after a bargain priced inhaler why not go private and pay the GP for the consultation instead? :eek::D

Philippa36

Prescriptions are regularly checked and if you choose not to pay for your prescription by ticking the exemption box and you're caught out, you will be charged a lot more than the cost of the prescription.

Why would you think that one chemist would charge less than another for a standard prescription anyway?

VfM4meplse

Philippa36 wrote: »

Prescriptions are regularly checked and if you choose not to pay for your prescription by ticking the exemption box and you're caught out, you will be charged a lot more than the cost of the prescription.

So true, NHS counter fraud will make an example of you and so they should.

GlasweJen

Unbeknown to most customers, if they don't supply proof we cross the "evidence not supplied" box on the back and the prescription can be pulled for investigation.

OP can your doctor not prescribe you ventolins on one script? You'd still pay £7.20 but you'd get 2 for the price of 1.

xxpollyxx

I dont really understand the original post, what do lloyds do for £5??

The prescription charge is £7.20 per item not per prescription. I think thats very good value on the whole! Yes - some items do cost much less than £7.20, but many items cost MUCH more! For example some steroid inhalers cost upwards of £80, imagine having to pay cost price for one of these!
If a medication costs a few quid and doesn't need a prescription we'll advise the patient to buy it themselves.

So sometimes your £7.20 gets you a £80 item, sometimes it might be a 39p item. Swings and roundabouts.......

Bronnie

I think OP glanced at this

http://www.lloydspharmacy.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=1008&storeId=90&productId=302309&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=&top=&top_category=&fromPage=&hotspot_prefix=

Hermia

xxpollyxx wrote: »

I dont really understand the original post, what do lloyds do for £5??

The prescription charge is £7.20 per item not per prescription. I think thats very good value on the whole! Yes - some items do cost much less than £7.20, but many items cost MUCH more! For example some steroid inhalers cost upwards of £80, imagine having to pay cost price for one of these!
If a medication costs a few quid and doesn't need a prescription we'll advise the patient to buy it themselves.

So sometimes your £7.20 gets you a £80 item, sometimes it might be a 39p item. Swings and roundabouts.......

I totally agree! I have one of those expensive steroid inhalers so despite my moneysaving ways I do not quibble over the cost price of cheaper items!

cocolgooh

It was really weird when I was in Manchester at the start of the summer and my inhaler ran out. The prescription charge is £7.20, obviously, but they charged £5.29 for some reason. I still don't know why they charged that though and I guess I probably never will. I don't mind paying the £7.20 I guess but I should be exempt from paying but they always say I have to pay anyway. I'm still in full time education though. I dont understand that to be honest.

katholicos

I get my inhalers and bucket load of regular prescription only meds for free, but if i had to pay for them i would strongly consider the Pre-Payment Certificate. Here is a link you might find useful.