prescription charges you can get them free if you earn below a certain amount.

[field]

Hi everyone I have just read a blog written 5 days ago with regards to prescription charges and wanted to give some information on this. If you earn below a certain amount you can get free prescription and help with dentist and spectacle fees. You need to get a HC1 form which can be obtained from your gp's surgery, dentist, opticians and even the chemist may have them. You need to complete the HC1 form and send it off to the address on the form. If you qualify you will either receive a HC2 certificate which entitles you to complete help or a HC3 certificate which entitles you to partial help. You have to re-apply every year. I have a HC2 certificate and have not had to pay for my prescriptions for many years now. I hope this is helpful.

[Flippityfish]

Thanks this is a good reminder for everyone as not everyone is told about prescription exemptions. You can get a HC2 exemption form if you are also in full time education at university as well and it has been very useful for me as a student with little money! I wasn't told this for the first year of university and I could have saved quite some money especially from the dentist who charged me private fees especially when I requested to go on nhs and then reclaim the money back. In the end I couldn't even claim the money back and needless to say, I do not use that dentist anymore!

[Hidden]

Thanks Field.

[vonnyrad]

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I am aware, free scripts whilst in full-time education expires at age 19 After age 19, it depends on personal income.My son and daughter both applied for these certificates when at university, the form was so demanding to complete,( it even asked how much cash you had in your pockets or purse, )and at the end of it all, they were both denied as they earned more than the weekly limit of £55(combining student loan, grant and earnings from part-time work, )despite the fact that they had household bills etc to pay, so had to work to supplement their loan,and had the grant because we as a family had a low income.However, If you are unemployed on JSA and living independently you could get help with housing costs etc. and immediately qualify for free prescriptions, glasses, dental etc.My son and daughter now both have pre-payment certificates as they need regular scripts(my daughter is being investigated at the moment for SLE having had symptoms for several years, I myself have had it for more than 30 years) as paying for several items a month is expensive, especially when (despite good degrees from leading universities)they are in minimum wage jobs.The whole prescription set-up seems flawed, particularly as regards exemptions for life- threatening conditions, as these rules haven't been changed for years and conditions which require daily drugs to keep a patient alive such as transplantation are not covered. I'm sure there are many sufferers of lupus who feel they should be eligible on medical grounds but do not fit in to the narrow range of qualifying conditions.

[letslaugh63]

Ty field will get on it a s a p x

[Petrof]

If you don't qualify for free prescription, then there is another option. Apply for a prepayment certificate - it costs £104 per year and as far as I know they are not mean tested. As long as you have at least 2 prescriptions per month it is very much worth it.. Information was given to me by my pharmacist - my GP probably still does not know it exists.