It should be free for everyone. Which isn't an option, of course.
this post was submitted on 21 Jun 2023
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It really shouldn't. There's enough pressure on the NHS as it is - I see no reason to add to that by spending finite money on free prescriptions for middle class people who can comfortably afford them, when that money would be much better put to use on sorting out the state of GP availability, reducing hospital waiting lists, etc.
Disagree. No one should have to pay for healthcare at the point of use. How that's paid for is a vexed question of course, but it should be the goal to be completely free.
People who have the means should pay, so we can afford for people who don't have the means not to need to.
When you're talking about spending taxpayers' money (whether that's on health, social care, education, etc) the marginal benefit of spending it on the neediest will almost always be greater than that of spending it on those who could afford to pay for it themselves. I find it very difficult to justify why millionaires in Britain can get free prescriptions, winter fuel allowances, OAP bus passes, etc, whilst there are other people struggling by with the help of food banks and charities for whom this money would do an awful lot more good.
Means testing is less cost effective in some cases than helping everyone.
We already do this through taxes, but our shitty government refuses to give the NHS what it needs. If it were handled properly free prescriptions wouldn't be an issue. They're certainly not in Wales.
I really like the way Gov.uk presents the information for this consideration.
The page has everything laid out, and they have considered and noted pretty much every eventuality and impact this could have.
to me it seems like a good idea there are other low income people not exempt. AND IMPORTANTLY if you are on more than 11 pickups a year you can just get a yearly ticket to cover unlimited for a year for price of 11 (there is also a 3 month version for cost of 3 items).
@Jon-H558 They should be free. They are here in Wales.
Universal free prescriptions are a gimmick. The NHS budget is not infinite - every penny that the Senedd chooses to spend on free prescriptions for middle class people who could already afford to pay for them is money that is not being spent on GP surgeries and cancer treatments and hip replacements.
It is almost indefensible to fritter money away on middle class gimmicks when tens of thousands of Welsh patients have to wait for >2 years for
an operation. England, which does not spend its finite NHS budget on universal free prescriptions, does not have the same problem.
Universal free rx is in no way a gimmick.
We already see many people who are on low income. But not entitled to benifits. Forced to make a choice over filling rx.
And that is the issue. Have the means is a very expensive system to manage. Any system that rellies that way costs more to run then the current cost.
Yet the whole people who have means to pay should. Is a gimmick. Designed to invoke a fair distribution idea. The point is no one pays rx costs. The difference between the rx charge and the cost of providing meds is huge. It in no way even covers the distribution cost.
Its only value is to make some feel that rich folk don't get free goods. The cost of the meds still far out weighs what they pay. And it hits poor folks way harder then anyone rich.