NHS prescriptions rise 30p to £9.65 in April despite the ‘health tax’ being frozen last year

The cost of an NHS prescription will rise to £9.65 this year, the Government announced today.

Patients in England will have to pay an additional 30p to collect their medicines from a pharmacy from April 1.

Activists have long called the fee patients in England have to pay to secure certain medicines, such as warfarin or asthma inhalers, an “unfair health tax”.

England is the only country in the UK that still charges, with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland dropping charges over a decade ago.

Prescription fees were frozen at £9.35 per item last April to “relieve pressure on the cost of living” – the first time in 12 years that the government has not mandated an annual increase.

Patients in England will have to pay an additional 30p to collect their medicines from a pharmacy from April 1

In a statement, the Department of Health and Social Care said it applied an inflation rate of 3.21 percent.

The cost of Prepayment Slips, Prescription Wigs, and Cloth Pads will also increase according to the rate of inflation.

Currently, people who do not qualify for free medicine can get a prescription prepayment certificate (PPC) which costs £108.10 for a year. However, this will increase to £111.60 per year.

There are few wage exemptions for patients in England, including those aged 16 to 18 and in full-time education, or patients aged 60 and over.

Medications such as contraceptives are almost always free of charge.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk