Exemption from prescription charge on age grounds - under 16

[pharmer7]

yeah i found this extremely annoying when I was doing my pre-reg, especially when it was international students in the local uni. They think they are just entitled to get everything free. One guy I got fed up with, cos he just couldn't understand. I hinted that having a HC2 meant its free, he said "yeah, i got that..", so just told him to tick and sign, then crossed the back of it. Why should I have to chase this kind of thing up?

[Farnsfield]

Yes, you are correct.

Fortunately, if he has ticked a box and signed the back the pharmacy will not be charged.

If a patient is willing to tick and sign, you cannot force them to pay, even if you know that they are not actually exempt. If they refused to pay AND they refused to tick and sign, you would have to tell them that you were not able to dispense the script.

Can someone clarify this for me please? If a patient ticks a box which is clearly nonsense, like maternity exemption for a man or under 16 when the date of birth indicates otherwise, will the pharmacy be charged?

[philly]

No, the patient might face an investigation by an NHS officer as his declaration was a fraud. Neither the pharmacy nor the pharmacist personally are not responsible for any financial implications of the patient's declaration.

[Defblade]

NB - the above is true so long as the whole declaration is completed by the patient (or their representative) - signing, dating etc.

If the pharmacy fills in the signature, the person who filled it in (maybe D Duck or M Mouse) will be personally liable, no matter what they believed the status of the patient to be.

Flip side is - if the declaration is not completed in full, the pharamacy will be debited the appropriate number of charges (unless age exempt and computer generated age/DoB is printed on the front of the script).

Move to Wales and save all this trouble

[bobbin]

Can someone clarify this for me please? If a patient ticks a box which is clearly nonsense, like maternity exemption for a man or under 16 when the date of birth indicates otherwise, will the pharmacy be charged?

No, the pharmacy will not be charged.......provided that two things have been done........

1. A box has been clearly marked.
2. The script has been signed in the box.

(Although, strictly speaking, the date and the address of the person signing are supposed to be filled in, the pharmacy will not be charged if they are not).

[mackemwonder]

Unpaid tax collectors! it will be worse when release 2 of EPS comes along and we're printing out tokens to be signed left right and centre