MSE News: Prescription and dental charges to rise in April

Former_MSE_Helen

NHS prescription and dental charges will increase in England from 1 April, the Department of Health has today announced...

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'Prescription and dental charges to rise in April




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Butterfly_Brain

What gauls me is that only those living in England pay the charges whilst Scotland, Wales and NI get free prescriptions.

clauski

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

What gauls me is that only those living in England pay the charges whilst Scotland, Wales and NI get free prescriptions.

Totally agree. Why should English residents have to fund a greater share of the NHS than others? And the fact 90% of prescriptions are already supposedly free does nothing but rub in the fact that the ones I pay for aren't!

Ectophile

Whatever happened to "free at the point of use"?

pmduk

Why is a rise in prescription fee rise considered as news anyway? Has it ever not occurred since 1979?

System

Ectophile wrote: »

Whatever happened to "free at the point of use"?

The country are not prepared to accept the level of taxation or the cuts in other services to achieve this ideal.

It was realised within 5 years of the NHS beginning that 'free at the point of use' was unsustainable

jennie65

Well if all UK countries were made to pay then maybe the English could pay slightly less. My son put off going to get his infected toe seen to because he never had enough money to pay the prescription charge. I ended up paying it even though I have a prepayment certificate to cover mine. Over £8 is a lot of money to some people so he was trying to make do without going.
We none of us go the the dentist as that's way out of our budgets. And no in case your wondering - we don't drink or smoke either.

sammyjammy

jennie65 wrote: »

Well if all UK countries were made to pay then maybe the English could pay slightly less.

I'm afraid it doesn't work like that. The other countries get a sum of money (probably per capita) and they choose to use some of that money to fund free prescriptions, England choose to spend that money on something else.

Personally I think very few people should get free prescriptions, certainly not all pensioners. So many people get prescriptions willy nilly just because they don't have to cover the cost themselves, its such a waste.

Pincher

There was a chain called Dentals Arts.
Claims to do NHS work, but it's non-stop upselling
to private. The NHS filling fell out after a couple of days.
Generally incompetent anyway, so I didn't want them to touch my teeth again.


Been going to a 100% private dentist for several years. Reassuringly expensive. I shudder at what people get on NHS.

22cuddles

pmduk wrote: »

Why is a rise in prescription fee rise considered as news anyway? Has it ever not occurred since 1979?

Yes, in the last General Election year there was no change from the previous until the following April.

Abbafan1972

It's expensive yes, but at least you get something to show for it at the end.

The dentist:- £18.50 charge for the dentist looking in your mouth and saying "that's fine we'll see in you in 6 months".