Prescription charges for HRT

Went to get my second prescription for HRT today. As I'm only 45 I'm on Oestrogen and Progesterone. The pharmacist says that because there are 2 medications i.e. 2 types of tablets) I have to pay TWO prescription charges! Is this really correct? WTF?!?!?!? image I know I only paid for one the first time I picked up this prescription, pharmacist has said that this was a mistake.

So I now have to pay £15 every 3 months for the privilege of not having brittle bones and a reduced risk of endometrial cancer. I know it's not a huge amount of money but I don't see why I have to pay double? And I bet if men got the menopause if would be free altogether image

GRRRR! image

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Comments

  • It sucks! But sadly each separate "drug" will incur it's own charge. Highly unfair. Have you looked at a pre-payment certificate? Might it be cheaper that way?

  • Oh, I was hoping pharmacist had got it wrong image

    I'll check out the prepayment thing, thanks mimaduck image

  • JjJj ✭✭✭

    yes, a PPC is worthwhile if you have more than 13 scrips a year. £10.40 a month by DDR, I think. image

  • Grendel3Grendel3 ✭✭✭

    I think the pre-paid only works if you have 3 or more - the pharmicist has mentioned it to me a couple of times when I have gone to collect my wife's 2 prescriptions - does seem to be unfair - have you thought about moving to Scotland or Wales.

  • BookyBooky ✭✭✭

    It really does depend on how many different items you have on each prescription. You can get one for either 3 months or a year. If you're getting two per month, then it's well worth getting a PPC. Linky.

  • bol saucebol sauce ✭✭✭

    I would query this with your doctor or the nurses there. I have exactly the same problem whenever I get my prescription from the pharmacy at the doctor's surgery, and occasionally elsewhere, but they check with the pharmacist and then apologise and say it's just the wording used for the tablets. They're called elleste duet conti, combined tablets, but the pharmacist himself and everywhere else don't ask for 2 x charges, but for some reason it's flagged up as double medication. Pees me off everytime I go to the doctor's pharmacy, especially as last time the assistant was telling me 'how lucky I was' to pay only once when her friend was paying double (more fool her I thought).

  • Is it me or isn't it a bit bizarre that you can get the pill free but not HRT?

  • Grendel3Grendel3 ✭✭✭

    Sarah the bookworm - thanks for that linky thing - it looks like the Pharmacist may have misinformed me - as I said earlier they said that if my wife had more than 2 prescriptions each month it would be worth doing - but reading the link she has two a month or 6 every three months so it would definitely worth it.

  • Screamapillar wrote (see)

    Is it me or isn't it a bit bizarre that you can get the pill free but not HRT?

    I was just thinking the same thing, Screamy image seems really unfair.

  • Grendel3 wrote (see)

     have you thought about moving to Scotland or Wales.

    Things aren't that desperate yet! image

    Thanks for all the extra replies. I think with my hayfever medication as well it's worth getting the PPC thing. Sorry if my first post was a bit ranty image this is why I need HRT to keep my bad moods under control!

  • Saffy Sweety Pea wrote (see)
    Screamapillar wrote (see)

    Is it me or isn't it a bit bizarre that you can get the pill free but not HRT?

    I was just thinking the same thing, Screamy image seems really unfair.

    Almost by definition women on the pill are younger and therefore likely to be poorer. Do we really want to be deterring 18 year olds from taking the pill because of the cost?

    Also the pill is normally taken for the benefit of two people, it's not fair to lumber the woman with all the prescription charges.

  • I was more thinking that HRT should be free, rather than charging for the pill image

  • BookyBooky ✭✭✭

    Lots of public health reasons for free contraception - there are already high rates of unplanned pregnancy, think how much higher it would be if people had to pay for prescriptions. 

    Not that I think the prescription charges are fair...

  • See if the doc will give you a Double prescription, you can get twice as much of the same thing for one charge.

  • Weeble. wrote (see)
    Screamapillar wrote (see)

    Is it me or isn't it a bit bizarre that you can get the pill free but not HRT?

    I was just thinking the same thing, Screamy image seems really unfair.

    Almost by definition women on the pill are younger and therefore likely to be poorer. Do we really want to be deterring 18 year olds from taking the pill because of the cost?

    Also the pill is normally taken for the benefit of two people, it's not fair to lumber the woman with all the prescription charges.

    Ditto what Saffy says, (above). I wasn't suggesting contraception shouldn't be free - In fact I have no idea how you read that into my comment at all image

     

  • I didn't read that in to it, I just don't think the pill and HRT are enough alike to justify the comparison.

  • I think from the POV of women's health they should be - if not more so.

    Why should we condem women to a difficult menopause because of the cost? It's not exactly something you can avoid.

  • I think it's unfair that you have to pay for it at all.

    Could you change to a combined tablet or patch?

  • Screamapillar wrote (see)

    I think from the POV of women's health they should be - if not more so.

    Why should we condem women to a difficult menopause because of the cost? It's not exactly something you can avoid.

     

    Screamapillar wrote (see)

    I think from the POV of women's health they should be - if not more so.

    Why should we condem women to a difficult menopause because of the cost? It's not exactly something you can avoid.

    I had no choice - messed up (planned!) c-section with No 2 Child meant that less than 2 years afterwards I had to have all "me bits" out as they were in such a state.  I had no option but to go onto HRT but eventually gave it up as I was allergic to virtually every form they tried.  I was far better off it than on and haven't had a problem since.

    I assumed you to mean that if the pill is free, then HRT should be so too and I'd agree.

    Anyhow, either with or without HRT, we're b*ggeredimage

  • You can place the same argument on any chronic health condition. I have asthma and need inhalers every few months - I get charged for two prescriptions each time. If I didn't have the inhalers and had an attack, I could die.

    I also have a chronic health condition which means every quarter I need to get an antifibrinolytic and a prescription anti-inflammatory. They don't work independentlly for what I have, but again, I have to pay double.  I don't get quite enough prescriptions for it to be worthwhile to get the prepay, so I just dole it out each time.

    You could go on to say why aren't tampons available on the NHS?  Why should women have to have that additional cost burden? 

    I totally disagree that women's health should be classed as anything other than equal importance to men's!

  • I don't see it as an issue of equal importance, more to do with individuals paying for treatments they cannot do without (and I'm treating free contraception as a seperate issue).
    You have a potentially life-threatening condition and your inhalers should be free. Menopause is unavoidable, and can pose serious long-term health risks.  HRT should be free.

    The NHS doesn't have a finite pot of cash, and difficult decisions always have to be made regarding what is funded and what isn't, but essential medicines should be free.

  • Nurse Ratched wrote (see)

    I The NHS doesn't have a finite pot of cash, and difficult decisions always have to be made regarding what is funded and what isn't, but essential medicines should be free.

    Bit contradictory that.... Finite pot of cash, but everything should be free....

  • No, essential medicines should be free, and prescription medication is only a part of the NHS budget which comes out of that finite pot. That gets us into the very sticky territory of defining 'essential', which will mean different things to different people.  And that's the job I wouldn't have for all the tea in China - deciding exactly which medicines should be supplied without charge. 

  • If you have something wrong with you, it's essential to you even if others think not

  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    Given that only something like 20% of prescriptions are paid for (ie. 80% are free of charge for various reasons), it's no wonder those of us who do pay have to pay a lot.

     

  • Wilkie wrote (see)

    Given that only something like 20% of prescriptions are paid for (ie. 80% are free of charge for various reasons), it's no wonder those of us who do pay have to pay a lot.

     

    I know... Every time I pop a viagra I calculate how much it's costing me.....  Would be chaper to pop down Kings Cross and hope for the best 

  • Dave The Ex- Spartan wrote (see)

    If you have something wrong with you, it's essential to you even if others think not

    Precisely.  

    There just seems to me to be such inequality in some cases.  For example - asthmatics have to pay for inhalers, but smokers (through some routes) can get nicotine replacement therapy free.

  • so all prescriptions should be free

  • Dave The Ex- Spartan wrote (see)
    Wilkie wrote (see)

    Given that only something like 20% of prescriptions are paid for (ie. 80% are free of charge for various reasons), it's no wonder those of us who do pay have to pay a lot.

     

    I know... Every time I pop a viagra I calculate how much it's costing me.....  Would be chaper to pop down Kings Cross and hope for the best 

    imageimage

     

    Dave The Ex- Spartan wrote (see)

    so all prescriptions should be free

    Since it could be argued that doctors wouldn't prescribe a drug if it wasn't necessary, yes, prescription medication should be free. 
    I suppose it all comes down to how the NHS spreads the allocation of thier total budget

    I'm going back to smoking  - surely if you can afford to buy fags, you can afford nicotine replacement?

  • Dunno  Doesn't it depend on the inducements being offered by the drug reps ?

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