§ Mr. FrenchTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the level of prescription charges paid by asthmatics.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyNo. As the result of the present wide-ranging exemption arrangements over 75 per cent. of all items dispensed in the NHS are provided free. Many patients with asthma benefit from these arrangements. Those who are not exempt but who need a lot of medication can save money by buying prescription pre-payment certificates, or season tickets. These certificates can lead to significant savings for anyone needing more than 14 items in a year or five items in a four-month period.
To extend these arrangements or to reduce the level of the prescription charge for all patients who suffer from asthma or any other medical condition would benefit only those whose resources exceed the qualifying threshold for help on low income grounds and would therefore not make the best use of the resources available to the NHS.