Prescription charges rise by 2.59%
The increase will start from the 1 May 2024 and will affect all those who take one off prescriptions, repeat prescriptions and those who are on pre-payment certificates.
The increase
- Single prescription charges will increase from £9.65 to £9.90
- Cost of 3- and 12-month pre-payment certificates to increase by 2.59%
It’s extremely disappointing to see a further rise in prescription charges, adding to the significant financial burden already faced by people with cystic fibrosis.
Clare Corbett, Director of External Affairs at Cystic Fibrosis Trust
The Government must swiftly review the outdated exemption list – ending prescription charges for daily treatments that are essential for people with cystic fibrosis to stay alive.
The Trust’s Prescription Charges campaigning
Cystic Fibrosis Trust has been campaigning for many years to abolish prescription charges for everyone with CF. The prescription charges list was drawn up in 1968, when CF was a very different condition and those with it were not expected to reach adulthood.
In March last year, the Trust handed in over 1,300 letters from people affected by cystic fibrosis to the Prime Minister. This was followed by a CF community petition hand-in by Nick Smith, whose daughter has CF. Nick took 15,000 signatures to Number 10 on 9 September 2023.
In February of this year, the Trust joined other members of the Prescription Charges Coalition to hand in a letter calling for the Minister for Primary Care and Public Health, Andrea Leadsom, to freeze prescription charges for 2024 and 2025.
Campaigning for free prescriptions
Living with cystic fibrosis (CF) often requires a huge burden of daily medication essential to stay well. But shockingly around 2,500 adults with CF in England do not qualify for free prescriptions.