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NHS prescription charges penalty notice


You shouldnt have to re apply as your diabetes is never going to go away, you should get one for life
 
Dianne Blackburn said:
You shouldnt have to re apply as your diabetes is never going to go away, you should get one for life
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All these fines have been cancelled ! Contact the British diabetic association for confirmation of this . NHS blantently lie about sending reminders they don't send them .
 
Dcooperxyz said:
All these fines have been cancelled ! Contact the British diabetic association for confirmation of this . NHS blantently lie about sending reminders they don't send them .
Click to expand...
Dear all,
Common sense has prevailed please see below from Diabetes UK. The fines are being cancelled and all money refunded>

Dear Darren,

We have some good news to share with you!

Over the past week we have received two letters from Health Minister Dan Poulter.

He has instructed the NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) to change the way penalty charges are issued to people without medical exemption certificates and confirmed that penalty charges will be cancelled or refunded to people as long as they get a medical exemption certificate within 60 days of being contacted.

From March 17 any penalty charges issued by the NHS BSA will be cancelled if people apply for a valid medical exemption certificate within 60 days of receiving the letter.

The NHS BSA will be writing to anyone who was issued with a penalty charge between 17 September 2014 and 17 March 2014. Anyone who has paid a penalty charge will be able to get it paid back if they have already got a medical exemption certificate or if they apply for one within 60 days of being contacted. Any outstanding penalty charges will be cancelled if people have a medical exemption certificate or get one within 60 days of receiving the letter.

We have not been given any timescales by the NHS BSA but if you were unable to get the penalty charge waived then you will be receiving a letter from them shortly.

Prescription charges will not be refunded and people will still be required to pay for prescriptions if they are issued with a penalty charge under the new system. This is because it is written into legislation and we are wary that any change in the law might risk reducing the amount of people who are entitled to free prescriptions. This is not something anyone is considering but it is why we won’t be campaigning for a change in the law.

One thing that has remained the same is the need for a medical exemption certificate if you are in England, aged between 18 and 60, and taking medication for your diabetes. Hopefully you have now got a certificate but if you haven’t then you need to ask your GP’s surgery for form FP92A.

If you have paid a penalty charge please let us know when you receive a letter from the NHS BSA. We are keen to make sure everyone who has paid a penalty charge gets their money back.

Finally, thank you! People with diabetes who were affected by this helped us convince the Government to sort it out. Even by just writing to us about your experiences you gave us a real insight to the problems people with diabetes were facing. The amount of people who wrote to their MP, tweeted Dan Poulter or complained to the NHS BSA put them in a position where they couldn’t ignore us anymore. Thanks!

If you have any questions about the changes do email us or give us a ring.

Best wishes,

Luke Thorne & Heather Bird

Policy and Public Affairs Team




T+44 (0)20 7424 1858 |F+44 (0)20 7424 1001
 
If u explain to the fine section that u moved house recently and had the worries and pressure of moving house at the time the exemption was due for renewal you have mitigating circumstances and moving home is classified as one of the most stressful things u can undergo in life.....THEY WILL CANCEL FINE .... I HAVE DONE THIS RECENTLY .....so I KNOW ITS CORRECT
 
We have free prescriptions in Wales, do I still need one or have to apply for the exemption certificate, just in case away in England and need drugs? As no one who has a permanent residence in Wales has to pay for Prescription charges, healthy or otherwise, I have over five conditions for exemption, who would I apply to, as they aren't issued in this Country anymore as far as I know? Sure to need something eventually when in England more now, due to work, and holidays.
I had one many, many years ago but that ran out over at least ten years ago.
 
I would think you would have to have a permanent address in England to have an exemption card - I may be wrong - you are best phoning the department that deals with them for advice
 
I do think if getting prescription in England that you will have to pay but you could phone to find out
 

I think that it would possibly be a case of planning ahead and making sure that you had enough medication before you left for your trip (most GP's will accommodate this for the run-of-the-mill type of medication). As far as applying goes, my GP did it for me, I just had to sign a form.
 
Dianne Blackburn said:
You shouldnt have to re apply as your diabetes is never going to go away, you should get one for life
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And if youre type 2 who no longer needs medication? Why should it be for life?
 
Just a heads up for anyone recieving free dental treatment.
When you move onto the retirement pension, free treatment ceases.

As I found out to my cost; had to pay for the treatment plus a fine.
Even though I signed the exemption form in all innocence they still made me pay.
Over £200 in all.
 
I suggest you fill in form HC1. This is to apply for reduction in charges for dental treatment, prescriptions, eye tests and the cost of glasses. Yes, I know those over 60 and diabetics get free prescriptions and free eye checks. But this form will help you get a reduction in dental costs if on low income. If in doubt fill the form in anyway as you have nothing to lose. Also get a benefit check at the Citizens Advice in case you are entitled to extra benefits.
 
Thanks, I'll look into it.
edit: Just ordered the forms online.
Like you say I might as well have it as not.
 
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Duncan57 said:
Are there type 2's who do not need medication?
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Most definitely Duncan, myself included. I chose not to take medication on diagnosis, and only took one Metformin starting a couple years back, after treatment for something else. According to my GP, I'm no longer diabetic, my A1C has been in normal range for so long.
 
Anyone know if they are still handing out fines to this date? Foolishly have signed my first prescription as I had a medical exemption certificate, as was told at the hospital "You now get prescriptions for life." and followed this up with the pharmacist and was told to tick the medical exemption one, when at the time I didn't have one.

However, I have now been to my GP and filled out the paperwork to receive one and I just hope that it doesn't take 3 days for the doctor to sign it, like he did with my sick note.
 
I wonder if you can help me please?
I received a Penalty Note charge from the NHS Business Services Authority on 20th July 2017 .

This related to a Prescription charge of £17.20 for items I had received in April 2017 which I was advised I was not entitled to as I did not have a valid exemption certificate.

I have been a Type one Diabetic since 1988 and although I did receive a exemption certificate at that point, I was not aware that more recent legislation had been brought in since 2002 stating that all cards needed to be renewed every 5 years, and I have never received any correspondence advising me of this, so I have always just thought that I could sign a prescription legitimately stating that I was exempt from prescription payments.
It states on the letter that
A.If you met the criteria listed in the table between 5/4/217 and 30/4/17 tell us as soon as possible.

I contacted the Business Service Authority straight away and explained that I had never received any letter asking me to update my card every 5 years.
I also went to my GP on the same day and signed a form to obtain a new exemption card.

I received the card a few days later and called back the NHS BSA to confirm my certificate number, but the next part of the letter states
B. If you did not qualify for free NHS prescriptions between the dated 5/4/17 and 30/4/17 you must either
Pay the original prescription charges and a penalty as a result of making an incorrect claim
Prescription £17.20
Penalty £86.00
Total £103.20

If you remain liable for a penalty charge and do not pay the outstanding charges by 17 August you will be liable to pay an additional surcharge of up to £50.
Now I accept that the following is my error however when I rang them to confirm that I did now have a Medical certificate and told them the number I just assumed that this then covered me and I wouldn’t have to pay anything as I did think I qualified through my being Type 1 Diabetic.

I am now aware that this is a genuine error on my part and that I still should have paid for the £17.20 prescription charge, and have now received a further letter increasing the payment to £147.

I really would not have objected to paying the £17.20 of course, it’s just that I made a genuine error .

I have contacted the NHS BSA to explain this however they have said the fine still stands and I must now pay the full £147 or they will send me to a debt collector.

I am experiencing a period of great stress in my life at present, and I’m not sure how I could cope with this - I am going through a marital break up, so the last thing I need is a “black mark” going against me as I need to at some point purchase a new home and cannot afford to have a bad credit rating appear.

I would find the £147 really difficult to pay - even if they gave me until the 16th January 2018 which is how long they would extend the terms to.

I have seen that some people have managed to appeal their fines successfully, but it looks as though this may have been a while ago.
I just wondered if anyone if there is anything else I can do. I never knowingly tried to “defraud” anyone and I have seen that people who did have a very old certificate were never informed of the new ruling of the 5 year card replacement, and I categorically never received any reminder.

To be honest I thought that as a Type 1 Diabetic, it’s something I have for life that I was covered for life. I do appreciate that it is my responsibility however I had literally no idea of this policy until I received the original letter in July.
 

Tracey - I'm sorry you're going through this, never mind at a time when you have other significant worries on your plate.

If I were in your shoes, I'd consider contacting the contact details given in post number 103, and asking them if they are aware of situations such are your own. It appears Diabetes UK did lots of work to address this, so it would be interesting to take their view too.

I hope you get something sorted, but it would be good to hear how you get on. Fingers crossed.
 
 
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