100,000 CANCER PATIENTS PAYING FOR FREE DRUGS; GPs 'unaware of new exempt rule'.Byline: EMILY COOK A HUNDRED thousand cancer patients are still paying for their drugs, despite qualifying for free prescriptions. The government announced last year that charges for sufferers would be scrapped from April 1. So anyone with the disease, or on medication for the effects of treatment, should not be paying. But only a third of the 150,000 people eligible have applied for an exemption certificate to allow them to pick up their drugs free. Macmillan Cancer Support The creator of this article, or someone who has substantially contributed to it, may have a conflict of interest regarding its subject matter. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. is concerned that many GPs are unaware of the new rules - and says patients may be refused exemption as doctors are not linking health problems to previous or current cancer treatment. The charity's Mike Hobday Hobday is a surname, and may refer to:
This page or section lists people with the surname Hobday. said: "More than four months after the introduction of free prescriptions, most cancer patients are still scrimping scrimp v. scrimped, scrimp·ing, scrimps v.intr. To economize severely. v.tr. 1. To be excessively sparing with or of. 2. To cut or make too small or scanty. to pay for medication. "We urge GPs and pharmacists to check people are aware of their entitlement and call on the government to do more to ensure guidance on exemption is clear." Last year a survey found nearly half of cancer patients said they cut back on essentials like food or heating to pay for prescriptions. To claim the free entitlement, patients can get an exemption application from their GP's surgery or oncology clinic and get it countersigned. But Helen from Kent, who takes three drugs daily to ease the side-effects of bowel and womb treatment, said: "It was a struggle to get a form as the surgery didn't know about them. "Then my GP decided I wasn't eligible as I didn't have cancer at the time. Someone less vocal than me could have backed down." A review of prescription costs - now pounds 7.20 an item in England - is being carried out with a view to extending the conditions exempt from payment. But charities want the charges abolished totally as in Northern Ireland Northern Ireland: see Ireland, Northern. Northern Ireland Part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland occupying the northeastern portion of the island of Ireland. Area: 5,461 sq mi (14,144 sq km). Population (2001): 1,685,267. , Scotland and Wales. CAPTION(S): COSTLY Charities want pounds 7.20 fee axed in England |
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