Its not the patients bankrupting the NHS its the many levels of managers and contractors that pay themselves extortiante amounts for ghost contract.

I think as good an idea as this is by the OP, its just the tip of the iceberg in relation to the services of this country being bled dry by idiots. Until the whole system is re-styled, they will never fix any of the problems. Stop giving out jobseekers allowance to people who have been unemployed for more than 6 months. Give them milk and bread vouchers. You want fags and a flat screen TV? Get you rass out to work and earn it like every other tax paying person in the country does. I read the constant sob stories in the press of "but i only want to be treated as an equal" and "i have a right to do what i want with my benefit money" - no you bloody well dont. It isnt your money and you shouldnt have it. Get out and make something for yourself. Sorry for the rant, but it annoys me something chronic when i see these wasters wandering around town when im on my lunch break. I just despair for the next generation, as im 31 now and i see the idiots i went to school with have never grown up and done anything in the world, they have just copied their parents into a life of benefits and handouts. The first politician that promises to fix this problem will get my vote whether they are Tory, Labour, UKIP, or the Monster Raving Looney Party.

When is enough, enough?

​wow i will tell you when enough is enough when over a million people are not using food banks because of sanctions when low paid workers are payied a living wage when the mps do something about tax dodging companys and when the sick and disabled are not being hung out to dry but yeah i am envious of that £60 to £70 aweek they have to live off and by the way i will not be viewing your reply so dont bother

excellent post, one of my big gripes is that our government is paying 30 times the actual price to supply these cheap items on prescription. i go through lots of children's paracetamol and ibuprofen but buy them from home bargains for£1 a bottle. they would cost the nhs maybe 6 times that. wasted money.

Ha nice touch, will be stocking up on, will be needed for the morning after, with all the Jack Daniels deals going round ATM lol

excellent post, one of my big gripes is that our government is paying 30 times the actual price to supply these cheap items on prescription. i go through lots of children's paracetamol and ibuprofen but buy them from home bargains for£1 a bottle. they would cost the nhs maybe 6 times that. wasted money.

Bargain.

In before the 2600% price increase.

Hot for just the description alone.

Not really a deal if you have ever been to a UK supermarket though!

Heat added.

Couldn't agree more

I get really annoyed when I hear from my friends 'oh you can get it prescribed'. Yeah I know but that's a waste of money for NHS and I always manage to find a deal on what I need for over the counter meds. Pharmacy Direct often has good deals delivered not mentioning Amazon.

£8.20 if I want paracetamol from the NHS!

I run and work nursing homes and buy these meds aplenty


The supermarkets/bodycare are cheapest for meds

Please avoid Sainsburys ~now lloyds
when its was sainsburys running the pharmacies, prices were cheap.
Now lloyds have taken over the sainsburys pharmacies the same ibuprofen and paracetamols have doubled in price

Heat

Wait... I'm confused, people pay £8.20 for paracetamol?

no GP prescribes Paracetamol anyway. :man:

who gets Paracetamol on prescription anyway?
my doctor would laugh at me if I went and asked him for it.
And as for 'saving the NHS' - let's leave that up to the politicians...

​ Many, many are exempt from prescription charges, so they can opt to have it free. Doctors have a responsibility to treat, so difficult to say "stop prescribing"

​ More than you think.

Just how does this save the NHS from going bust? you cannot state which brands(or generic) you want to be filled on a prescription

Didn't know Sainsbury have pharmacies, are they in store?

£28 for 16 aspirin? Think I'll pass.

Shouldnt it be the other way round- tell the NHS to grab meds from Home Bargains. With the £8 prescription charge they'll soon be back on their feet! :smile:

food post op I like it.

The NHS in it's current form is a dead duck, the sooner it goes the better. Free at the point of need - yes, provided by the public sector, no.

Hundreds of people on free prescriptions from each practice getting 100 to 224 paracetamol a month

If you maintain a good diet and exercise you will be needing less pills in some cases. Don't take medication for colds...

No the problem is that people who are exempt from the charges use the prescriptions and then pharmacies make a fortune from the government on all these paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin prescriptions.

Fair enough for all other medications but for something that is so ridiculously cheap in any supermarket, shop or even pharmacies themselves it's a 'liberty' take on the system to be completely frank. People definitely wouldn't do it and go buy it in a shop if they had to pay £8.20 themselves for it.

Suppose if you are on 8 a day every day then buying over the counter is difficult due to restrictions on how many you can buy

Its not the patients bankrupting the NHS its the many levels of managers and contractors that pay themselves extortiante amounts for ghost contract.

Your post makes no sense....
A prescription costs £8.40, if you get Paracetamol on prescription then nearly all the £8.40 goes towards subsidising the more expensive prescriptions which cost more then £8.40.
So every time you buy Paracetamol from anywhere other then the NHS your making the NHS loose £8.40.

Your right about not wasting the doctors time, I just don't think you understand how the prescription system work.

It drives me crazy how people go to the doctor for common cold and for free medication.... Our NHS is on its knees and yet we are still insisting on heading to the doctors and hospital for the tiniest of things...... I refuse to go to the doctor unless absolutely necessary and in terms of medication you can buy in the shops id buy supermarket brands before wasting a doctor's time and NHS money... Nice post OP :smile:

The worst I've found is that so many people are selling prescription stuff on eBay like diabetics test strips/ cassettes etc which I'm sure NHS is paying at least £20 on each!

I would imagine that you instruct your doctor that you don't want/need the paracetomol/ibuprofen and that you will get them yourself - when that is feasible to do.

I do wonder if doctors get some incentive from prescribing certain drugs like this, as my mother and dad used to get them prescribed like they were sweets.

1 NHS box has 200 paracetemol tablets = 12½ retail boxes with 16 tablets per box

13 boxes = £2.47 (you'd have to make at least 6 trips to the shop though)
200 tablet box = £8.20 with a prescription

I reckon either the pharmacy or the NHS is making serious money on these tablets (but the cost for the GP visit outweighs it).

Wouldn't getting paracetamol on prescription be better for the NHS?

Leaving aside the prescription only stuff as that's moot,If we all buy the drugs off prescription that are cheaper than the prescription fee, but only use a prescription when they cost more than the fee, the NHS always have to make up the shortfall.

MIMS (which list drug prices) has the 500mg paracetamol tablets at 32 for 73p, If you were to be prescribed 32 tablets, and paying the £8.40 that means that after you take the drug price off, and the dispensing fee (from PSNC) of 90p, then the the NHS gets £6.77 "profit" from you.

That helps subsided the drugs, the people and facilities (and no they don't get enough but that's a different point) that cost a lot more, if it gets too out of balance the fees would rise, or the subsidy go meaning you could be paying a lot more per drug like they do in the USA.

You are talking about an NHS prescription charge. Buying generic would cost you less than 60p

northern Ireland has free prescriptions for all, that's fine in many cases but when doctors are prescribing items that cost very little to buy its a problem. there should be a £2 minimum cost to patient before prescriptions are offered! how much would a simple thing like that save.... probably millions.

I dont think you quite understand. It isn't the people who are paying for prescriptions that are bleeding the system dry, its the ones with free prescriptions who are using their exemption to get trivial medication on a prescription that the tax payer pays for. The NHS supply the medication, but have to pay extortionate fees to the big companies for the drugs. The OP is offering an alternate way of doing it, wherebye the ill person actually contributes and buys the paracetamol for 19p themselves...

So I know there are some cheap generic brands at supermarkets but how do these compare to the big name brands?

I'm guessing something must be different to legitimise the difference between 19p and £3.50 or more.

How much do the Health Tourists cost the nhs?

I am glad you said when feasible as there are a lot of people who simply cannot afford to pay for any medication 19p or not, and they do get freebies from big pharma companies.

iv never received these from drs , infact they have stopped giving them .

I don't call this a deal too. any dick or Dom knows how much they are in places

I think as good an idea as this is by the OP, its just the tip of the iceberg in relation to the services of this country being bled dry by idiots. Until the whole system is re-styled, they will never fix any of the problems. Stop giving out jobseekers allowance to people who have been unemployed for more than 6 months. Give them milk and bread vouchers. You want fags and a flat screen TV? Get you rass out to work and earn it like every other tax paying person in the country does. I read the constant sob stories in the press of "but i only want to be treated as an equal" and "i have a right to do what i want with my benefit money" - no you bloody well dont. It isnt your money and you shouldnt have it. Get out and make something for yourself. Sorry for the rant, but it annoys me something chronic when i see these wasters wandering around town when im on my lunch break. I just despair for the next generation, as im 31 now and i see the idiots i went to school with have never grown up and done anything in the world, they have just copied their parents into a life of benefits and handouts. The first politician that promises to fix this problem will get my vote whether they are Tory, Labour, UKIP, or the Monster Raving Looney Party.

When is enough, enough?

You forgot to include the rest of the picture with Jeremy Hunt next to the bucket with a shotgun, blasting the holes in it.

All well and good if you pay £8.20 per prescription, you save a packet. But what if like me you have an annual prepayment certificate? Should I choose to pay on top of that for cheap medications and this will save the NHS?

The NHS get massive discounts on drugs as they by massive qualities, they are one of the largest medical buying powers in the world.
The requirements to get free prescriptions in England are pretty tight and I doubt include many of the people on this website.

I'm going to put a spanner in the works here :laughing:

My dad is prescribed paracetamol as part of his pain management for 'moderate to severe arthritis of the back'.

He has been prescribed 4 - 6 paracetamol tablets a day.

Due to the restricted sales of paracetamol he would only be able to buy 3 packs of 16 at one time, which would only last a week or so and he doesn't go shopping or have access to a pharmacy that regularly.

In addition to that, when he has to go to hospital - he's had a few strokes and other medical issues - by having it on his prescription form the dose is automatically dispensed to him along with his other medications. If it were not on the prescription then it is considered a 'recommendation' rather than a 'prescribed medication' and not automatically given to him.

Another benefit of prescribing it is that the doctor knows what contraindications may occur with his other meds and can manage the drugs and make sure he has regular blood tests etc to make sure no damage is being done. Doctors really do need to know what you're taking!

And my last point - if he weren't prescribed it, he probably wouldn't take it. He's fixed in his ways and wouldn't accept a suggestion of taking them, however once prescribed it's more than a suggestion and he feels obliged to follow the doctor's orders. And as a result he is in less pain.

So, there are some times that prescribing paracetamol is a good thing.

Less than 10% of prescriptions issued are actually paid for. I know there was talk a few years ago of abolishing free prescriptions for unemployed/pensioners etc and introducing a much lower flat rate of a couple of quid. Don't think it ever came to anything though.

Edit: "60% of the population are entitled to free prescriptions but they take over 90% of all prescriptions issued".

Yep those getting free prescriptions are going to be browsing this site and will see the error of their ways.....
They get free prescriptions because they meet the criteria which generally means they are financially struggling in the first place.

Most of the pharmacists will look at a prescription and tell you if its cheaper to just buy the product if you have to pay for it anyway.

Less than 10% may be paid for but the £8.20 is way above the average price they pay for the medications most people take.

Yes, I agree. Sometimes people need paracetamol on prescription for chronic pain.
This is aimed at those people might only take this type of medication occasionally and are not aware that there is often a very cheap alternative to the branded medications available over the counter.

Totally agree, the government has been crippling the country by cutting the budgets of local councils to such an extent that exisiting social care no longer exists and the elderly are reliant on the nhs. All these sneaky taxes and cuts only serve to provide a fertile ground for finger pointing and the on-trend scapegoat is immigration. The tories are happy to keep this status quo going for as long as it deflects the blame from them.

We live in a civilised society which surprise surprise we have to pay for. We can't have our cake and eat it, but we vote for people who promise just that. Smoking, diet (inactivity) and elderly care are huge drains on the NHS at a time when their budgets are being slashed. Soon, once broken, the Tories will be able to say "not working, sell it off" and private companies will drive the budgets.

Why is it that prescriptions are free to every person in Scotland, wales & Northern Ireland ?

I totally agree, and think that everybody should pay for prescriptions. My 5 month old takes a lot of medication, some very expensive. They are free for him but if I had to pay for them, even at £8.20 each, I would because they keep him alive!

The medication part of the tablet is 100% the same, it's only the fillers that they use to bulk out the tablet that can be different, as well as obviously being allowed leeway on shape etc.

Also worth nothing that 'ranitidine' is just generic Zantac. Usually £1 odd in supermarkets.

Wow there's so much uninformed BS in this thread.

Research showed that the actual cost to the NHS of 7 days worth of paracetamol was £1.68. That's 56 tablets, so around double the price you can buy it for in Tesco. This cost includes all relevant costs, such as pharmacy, etc. Tesco often sell things like this as a loss-leader.

The boxes in Tesco aren't designed for ongoing treatment - anyone who needs paracetamol for more than a few days needs to see their GP. Most GPs won't prescribe something that's available cheaply if it's for a short period of time (i.e. a cold/headache), but if you need it long term, however cheap you can buy it in Tesco, it should be prescribed.

I have 4 prescriptions on a monthly basis - I don't get them free, I pay in advance on the NHS prepay scheme. I think it's £104 for 12 months - or about £2 a prescription for me. I looked up the NHS cost of my medications - I think it added up to £250 a month.

I don't believe in free prescriptions. I pay my way in life, but without the standard prescription fee, we'd either be in the same situation as the states - relying on insurance companies, or I'd be shelling out £3000 a year, purely for the privilege of having an illness.

There are, of course, exceptions. A mother who has recently been made unemployed and has no money gets a cold. Does it hurt that she goes to the GP to get paracetamol and lemsip? That £4 spent in Tesco could be spent on baby food, or heating.

The world isn't black and white people.

But it's ridiculous that people earning a good wage even get it for free

How bizarre, it's almost like this government has some kind of ulterior motive to want the NHS to fail.

And here's the NHS costs for Ibuprofen (the generic version of Nurofen).

The NHS cost is £0.16 to £0.20 for a pack of 16 tablets, which is probably the same or less than Tesco's charge.

Hey, let's not let the facts get in the way of a little scaremongering and lack of education!

Still believe the NHS is paying 30 times more for your meds???

Lol, you know you could be on to something there.

Exactly.

Only Doctors, Managers, and business interests would benefit from the privatisation of the NHS.

I've been repeatedly impressed that the vast majority of the first two groups have the integrity to actively resist it.

I know.

I was just trying to give an alternative perspective to the majority of people saying that there was no need for paracetamol on prescription. In fact there is a need, so it's good to see other perspectives.

Why is that ridiculous? I assume that person "earning a good wage" pays their taxes, in which case, they are entitled to their 'free' medication. It's we that have it ****-about-face, not the other countries of the UK!

To be fair, going from past experiences, any system implemented to work out who can afford, or should be paying for, prescriptions would be so expensive that it would probably wipe out any savings!

Nope don't agree with that statement when the rest of the uk have to pay for it.

My doctors surgery is bursting at the seams with people who can't speak English and don't look as if they are from the European union. If they aren't entitled refuse them or make them pay.

That mother is however taking a GP appointment when really it wasn't necessary.

I had to wait 3 days for a doctors appointment even with a suspected (and then confirmed) infection, so having an appointment for a cold just to get some free paracetamol really isn't a good use of the GP's time or NHS resources and negatively impacts the genuinely sick.

The scenario you gave would be when the 'minor ailments' scheme would be ideal - anyone with prescription exemption charges can go to a pharmacist and get things like paracetamol, thrush treatment, nappy rash treatment, anti-diarrhoea treatments etc free.

By seeing a pharmacist for minor ailments it frees up the GPs appointments so they can see people with more serious issues.

It's a shame the minor ailments scheme isn't nationwide as it really would help GP waiting lists!

it's the minor ailment scheme that p****s me off. why should filling a form out entitle you to free paracetamol etc. I get free prescriptions but I would never take a prescription for anything I can buy over the counter and nor should anyone.

Absolutely agree. They the same price in Aldi and home and bargains.

There's always one uneducated and uninformed **** on here and today you're it.


I agree, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Ibuprofen is the same price at Savers and Home Bargains, 25p for 16 (200mg).

So many upset at little things.... manipulated to see the small lies and ignore the big :wink:

If we paid the same percentage of our GDP as the vast majority of the world does for its health service then the NHS wouldn't have a problem. The simple fact is it is starved of funds.

have a bit of heat

Wow, this thread is crazy, everybody has really strong views on the NHS. Personally I think the problem is the NHS needs to change, change costs money and people (generally) don't like things changing so it is trying to be run in a similar way it was when the population with access to it was 20 million less. Also the more medicine and medical procedures advance the more demand there is for the NHS. With demand the way it is the NHS is not fundable without massive tax increases. The real question for me is, do we all pay more taxes to fund for everybody or do we privately fund our own healthcare?

Or vote for a government that increases the budget for the NHS instead of the privileged grammar schools

What we get for having a monopoly

All medications should be "opensource" and available for delivery online without prescription, no patents. And if paracetamol is available this cheap and you can self service the stuff (it is one of the most dangerous medications), then why do women have to do some stupid questionnaire or something to receive the relatively safe morning after pill?.

Why do people with mental health issues have to go through the process of calling a doctors and have to wait until the medication has run out before they can get the prescription (so travelling is a problem). Then they have to go to a Pharmacy and potentially pay £8.20 for a medication that they need in order to live a better life.

Not to mention the ridiculous waiting time in Pharmacies, how long does it take to pick a packet off a shelf or draw and put it in a bag?. Then they ask you loudly "Do you pay for your Prescriptions?", which in modern day Sun reading Britain has very negative social implications.

The system is broke, but it won't be fixed. Just more "NHS Foundation Trusts" and private firms milking the NHS for everything theyv'e got, whilst it lasts. Plenty of fat cats on the fiddle and execs taking back handers.
The post war socialist structure is being eradicated if you haven't noticed..

Paracetamol has always been cheap in stores so I don't class this as a deal but more informative for the people that did not know. On the subject of the NHS haemorrhaging funds, why has no one mentioned 'health tourists' who take it for a ride to the tune of £600 Million per + year!

The only way you can save the NHS from bankruptcy is by voting. Vote the Conservatives out of office (and make sure UKIP don't get any power) and you will still have an NHS.

nhs is in dire straits. Whenever i go , the excessive redtape and process, inefficient equipment make me double think.. that privatisation may have a point

Take a look at this..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/14RlXMhR7g7Dk09vK7YmWXl/are-more-expensive-painkillers-worth-the-money

Isn't that because they aren't allowed out in public unless accompanied by a male family member? Or is that another group?

£43 for a GP appointment we're told; plus this mother gets to pass the cold (an incurable virus) on to however many more people she comes in to contact with (including the GP!), then the cost of the prescription too. This would be one of the many reasons the NHS is on its knees. Pay your pound in Tesco or Poundland and get your generic cold relief and stop wasting the country's money.

My wife and I have worked hard since leaving school and we believe in the NHS for what it was set up for. If you need basic care then you can have it. If you need a nose job, boob job, braces on your teeth for cosmetic reasons, etc then go and pay for it yourself. If you don't like it then find somewhere else that thinks that wasting thousands on these "treatments" should be funded by your peers and abuse their system instead.

As someone who "pays their dues" I am frankly fed up of subsidising others. We've been told to expect to pay an addition £3xx more on our council tax next year because we (just scrape) in to a "luxury" house banding. I need to pay to get my windows and doors replaced plus upgrade my hearing to modern standards when I have the pleasure of driving past council homes (which I am paying to subsidise) are getting them done. I'd love to have been allowed a council house when I started work but my wife and I didn't fit the criteria to get one, so we've had to pay our own way, and then pay for others to benefit from them instead. Even where we live I have to pay an annual maintenance charge for some open space to be tended to as it's a newish development, but we have to allow others in from out with our development who graffiti structures, damage equipment, etc we then have to pay to get brought back to a good standard.

Strip back the NHS to what it was designed for. Cut back public services to what they should have been. If you pay for something then you generally try to ensure that you get the most from it. If you don't pay then you tend to see it as not being of sufficient value to respect it.

If you've worked hard, you should get more. If you're unable to work, you should get more. Otherwise, no, try harder and live on the "breadline". There's 3 billion people in the world who have to survive on less than. £1 per day. What gives you the privilege to say your life is worth more than theirs solely by virtue of where you happen to be born.

Nobody in this country would starve to death without a food bank. You'd find they'd make a different choice of how their money is spent if it was actually that bad.

I support charities like mercy ship, like children's hospices, like refugee camps. These people rely on charity to live. They do not take advantage of other people's generosity because they are making bad choices.

Your woman above. If she reckons it's maybe once a year she does this, then I would support a 2p per week rise to her benefit payment to pay for the generic brand lemsip. That way I can expect to see a reduction in the money I pay to the UK government to pay for the wasted appointment and prescription.

Rant over!

one of the worst demographic for this are the baby boomers pots of cash but still take take take what they can get for free

Don't do drugs kids

​Uneducated and uninformed? I'm a 31 year old Accountant studying at night school to better myself to better provide for my wife and future family. When I left school I worked nights in factories, I have worked day shifts in supermarkets while working evenings in pubs as a second job. I have worked as a brickies labourer and also swept the floors in a steel factory. For the last 9 years I have worked my way up from a credit controller to a Management Accountant. I have done my fair share of graft so I will not apologise for not showing respect to those who refuse to.

I don't understand how my views on thinking other people should have to work and pay their way offends your values. I'm genuinely interested how my comment offended you. All I can presume is that you yourself are jobless and receiving said benefits and have taken some exception to me saying you should be without your cancer sticks or 4k TV.

:smiley: Fantastic post, heat added.

​don't forget their husbands who own shops and businesses that on paper don't ever make a profit.....therefore zero tax for the household.

It's not free, we all pay for the nhs.

Jonathan Pie did a good video on this. It's also happening to the BBC. A conservative government basically breaking socialist organisations because that way they can be privatised with no complaint.

does this save the nhs money. I thought socialised means we pay more for things like paracetamol and less for things like cancer treatment. for example a nhs proscription costs £8 but the nhs does not pay £8 for paracetamol so they are making money from it to subsidise the expensive medicane. if everyone bought over the counter cheap meds woundnt the whole point of socialised medication be undermined

Deal

This is all rrp stuff wtf

£8 billion over 6 years according to an article in the Guardian.

This is what you get with no meaningful opposition. And a huge group of apathetic constituents. I can't believe the Tories aren't getting more grief, their spin dept is masterful. I mean, everyone now has all their internet usage logged and available for a huge number of groups to access should they wish, including Works and Pensions, Police, etc - anyone squeak about that? Nope.... Everyone's too busy bewing outrageously outraged about some non-story involving a celeb somewhere. Then blaming immigration. :disappointed:

I think trump has been occupying the news quite nicely to sweep a few things under the rug.

The thing with these sorts of figures are that it's a one-eyed view of the picture. The reciprocal arrangement we have with the rest of the EU states means that the other EU countries pay far, far more for UK Health Tourists than the UK pays for EU Health Tourists. Being one of the richest countries in the world, we have a very much higher % of people travelling on holidays and the like than others. The UK bill for health outside of the UK is ENOURMOUS. Just think of the number of brits who are going to need attention from winter sports injuries, or the drinking accidents during the summer....

But hey, don't worry about that - we'll soon be free to pay just our own bills, and I think a quick search will show that UK costs outweigh EU costs to us by about 5 to 1. So we save a quid, but have to spend 4. lol.

The balanced view doesn't fit with today's thirst for outrage though

(edit: I'm not having a go at you btw! Or others! I'm concerned that the message is put out so one-sided. I think that is wrong.)

I've lost count of the number of times I've queued up in the Pharmacy to get a prescription and heard every single person other than me in the queue say no when asked If they pay for there prescription...

I always buy paracetamols in poundshop as I assume they're cheap. :disappointed:

I am typing this from a hospital bed, but I am fortunate enough to be in as a private patient and paying for my own medications!
I am shocked that anybody could think that we would be better off without the NHS, The inference being that it should instead be in private hands. Hasn't worked well for the rail industry, no care homes for the elderly - watch some of the exposes in this area! I believe it doesn't work too well America either.
Blaming certain social groups is just a distraction and misses the big picture that is government under-funding.
It would be a crying shame to lose the NHS, an institution we should all be proud of.

Good but the main reason the NHS is dying our governments choices.

I think pharmacies should hold more responsibility in supplying meds like this so safety protocols are there. I don't think they should be this cheap or available this easily in supermarkets. Paracetamol overdose is easily done if you think about all the products that have it in ie flu/cough meds etc and is one of the hardest things to reverse because of the small therapeutic index of the drug (toxicity is easily achieved if you take more than recommended.) Yes people might think it's a waste of resources for the NHS but just think about the cost and impact of accidental / non accidental overdose?

​again there are always exception, the point is about those people ordering basic items on prescription just to save themselves a £1. it's a massive issue in Northern Ireland as we all get free prescriptions and some people just take advantage costing the nhs millions in unnecessary costs.

Drugs all have a Product License number (PL) on the box - if the PL numbers are the same, it's the same product from the same manufacturer (as far as I know). There was something on about it on BBC the other week. Not sure that Neurofen will have the same PL as a generic ibuprofen, but I'm pretty sure all their varieties (back pain, period pain etc) all have the PL number.

Here is a fact that 3 or so years ago it cost the N.H.S £86 per patient to see the G.P not sure today's value and then as others have said and I have witnessed people going just for O.T.C medication/pain kills that cost pennies. G.P's you need to make people pay for these painkillers ontop of this last nights program G.P's behind closed doors a young Asian guy took a perscription for painkillers but then this DR should of told the guy to BUY these himself. This government and previous are all corrupt take backhanders, I'd better stop there before we go to deep

​Seriously, what are you on? I'm not attacking people who pay INTO the system!

The PL number means it's the same tablet inside the boxes so it can be different manufacturers with the same PL number! :smiley:

You're actually attacking people who don't exist, a culture of benefit fraudsters has been discredited many times.

http://www.cas.org.uk/features/myth-busting-real-figures-benefit-fraud

At less than 1% fraud rate, the benefits system is hugely efficient.I don't know if you've applied for JSA recently but they give you peanuts, wouldn't cover rent anywhere.

I think I found your problem


The Daily Mail by any chance? Stop reading rags.

DISCLAIMER - (before people get on their soap boxes) I am NOT talking about people who have a genuine need.

It really bugs me when I go into a pharmacy and tick the box to say I pay for my prescriptions when its full of low life's sucking the life out of the economy whilst contributing nothing to it. I don't mind paying and doing my part but there's so many leeches around who smoke too much, drink too much, eat too much and breed too much (without having the assets - financial and emotional) that really makes it tiring handing over £8/9 every time :disappointed:

Anyway...HOT lol

19p seems a good deal. Heat from me. Just wish we could buy more than 32 from the same place. Does it work if you go out of the store and back in on the same day? Just keep doing that until you got a few to make it worthwhile?

​haha never! good old BBC actually :wink:

Is this a deal? it seems the goods on offer are retailing at normal prices so no deal.Cold from me

http://www.wilko.com/coughs-colds-and-flu/wilko-max-strength-cold-and-flu-day-and-night-capsules-x-16/invt/0249131
Best price for day/night capsules.
Or, a cheaper option is to buy 19p paracetamol and these for 60p.
http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/shop/gb/groceries/decongestant---sinus-relief/sainsburys-max-strength-congestion-relief-x12

​there are 3x more pakistani doctors as a proportion than compared to the general public..

​oh i know, ever the cynic lol. It so sad to see an institution created to do great stuff had just become gold mine for those serving their self interest.

I remember seeing a post floating around being shared on Facebook about how buying paracetamol/ibuprofen from supermarkets save the NHS £xx. I think it's been debunked though. I mean, it may save a marginal amount of money, but we're talking the pences here, not pounds.

If anything, supporting your local independent pharmacy and paying that little extra is a much bigger investment than spending it in a supermarket giant which rains millions of pounds in profit. The cuts to community pharmacy really isn't helping the healthcare system.

I was operated on by a Pakistani orthopaedic surgeon around 20 years ago. Nice guy and he turned my life around, I'm very grateful for immigrants in the UK.
People forget we live in an increasingly shrinking world and people like my surgeon have come to the UK to have a better life and work in a world leading system. If we had sufficient capable human resources within the UK then the visas offered would not be available and people like him would not be here.
He told me earlier this year when I went back to see him for a check up that after 35 years of working for the NHS that he's going back to Pakistan to settle for his pension years. Yes, he's drawing it from the UK purse and taking it abroad, but he deserves it. He could have earned more working in many other countries, but chose the UK. His 2 sons are surgeons and he has a daughter who is a psychologist all in the NHS. I won't mention a name on a public forum, but he has chosen to come here and we have reaped the benefits of him having done so since.
I think that after the hurt and suffering we have caused around the world then I'm surprised that former colonies are not bitter for centuries of pillaging carried out by the UK.

This. Most mainstream media is owned by a select few wealthy individuals/corporations, and that's not a conspiracy theory. It's a massive problem. It means that agendas are pushed through these media outlets onto the common people, which seek to only benefit the interest of these corporate entities. Did we hear much about NHS contracts being sold to the for profit company Virgin/Richard Branson? Nope. Wonder why.

​There really is no such thing as a free press anymore. Whether it's religion, politics or good old fashioned money, all news outlets serve an agenda.

Came across a guy who has just entered his 2nd IVA. Never worked a day in over a decade, but racked up over £20k of debt and entered an IVA. That cleared 6 years ago and he's spent the past year racking up another £14k which he's just entered another IVA for. He reckons he should actually pay around £1200 towards this in the end.
He was laughing saying this and then asked me to work harder and earn more tax because he needed a pay rise (in his benefits). I could've lamped him one!

Yeah, I guess that's true. But knowing this and that outlets are forcing opinions on us is the first step to having a more balanced and informed opinion.

Can't say that the general public isn't being manipulated by tabloid giants such as daily mail et al. and their hate-filled rhetoric and scapegoat-ing.

This is exactly correct. Sometimes the expensive ones will have something like Caffeine too or some other kind of herbal remedy stuff. In terms of the actual paracetamol, it's the same stuff if its 19p or 19 quid

Well why the actual donkey cockadoodledo don't the Government use Asda's supplier for the NHS rather than the stupidly over hiked firms the Government use at the moment?

Psst.. I don't think the Government care so why should you.

Was standing in at the airport check in desk only to hear the mother of a family proudly announcing that they went to the doctor to get their free NHS suntan lotion for the holiday. On the flip side know folk that that work in the NHS drawing £50k+ salaries to produce surveys of surveys that the bottom line result is just pure common sense. Its about time that the NHS had a public HUKD of its own, instead of deals its issues we can vote on!

Amazes me that people fall for this stuff about scroungers and immigrants bleeding the country dry. That's just distraction tactics from our dishonest and manipulative politicians.

These costs are a few hundred million a year (probably nearer to £100m). But we happily spent £50bn on the bank bailout and £12bn+ on nuclear subs that can't fight terrorists.

A bit of perspective is needed.

If you ask at the instore pharmacy they sell them in packs of 32 and they are better value. Apologies if already posted, but this is one long thread...

Enough of the sob stories and the CVs showing how much you work and therefore how much people who don't work don't deserve any sort of life at all.

Do you really think even "benefit scrounging" would be a decent life? really? wake up.

Government and the big business must love a lot of these comments; as you are all being taken for fools.
Do you really think the very small number of 'benefits scroungers' in this country is to blame for the NHS for the state it is in? or is it the health tourist immigrants all coming over here to be treated?

Look at who is meant to be responsible for running the health service effectively; the Government.
What have they done? the NHS is in its worst crisis EVER, yet not a single mention of it in the Autumn statement or funding.

No paediatric ICU beds, ED waiting lists >4hours, ridiculously low morale amongst nurses and doctors with a new contract which will make their task of providing you with SAFE and DECENT care increasingly more and more difficult. It's not hyperbole when you see the news reports on the TV about the state of the health service; all this under the Conservative government when it was in surplus when Labour left it.

Yet right now we are hearing "oh it's unsustainable".etc; if it's not being funding properly of course it's going to have problems.

People have to face the facts that the Government will need to pay more towards it. This likely means increasing taxes for it. They however don't have the bottle to do this.

However, they do have the bottle to reduce tax for big business, the extremely wealthy (£250,000+ pa), fly jets into Syria, trident missile subs, renovate stately homes and royal buildings with taxpayers money (when the owners are multi-millionaires).etc oh and one big thing; bailing out all the banks in 2008 (this one is the fault of all the parties).

I'm not a fan of NHS managers and think most are a waste of space but why has no one mentioned PPI? Pretty sure that is costing the NHS more than all the managers combined. Lets face it the government want it to fail; so they can sell it off to their mates. They don't give one s**t about you or your struggles, look at George Osborne, he took money from disabled people and the poor and he has already earned half a million this year.

For all who think pharmacies make a fortune from paracetamol prescriptions, please be aware that apart from a fixed dispensing fees of 90p, the pharmacies only get paid £2.28 per 100 paracetamol.
And the £8.40 prescription charge ( where applicable) is not retained by pharmacies and is forawarded to NHS.

What about the big wigs having conferences all expenses paid at our local hotel. in my opinion that's where the waste is in the nhs. unlike a private company, no one is accountable in the NHS.

It would be a good idea if the NHS charged all the time wasters. So lets say a ambulance goes to a call and it was a false alarm or the patient had a minor panic attack which didn't require a ambulance, they should be charged £40. Say if a patient is a hypochondriac and calls for a doctors appointment every week, that patient should be charged £10 if the outcome of the assessment was deemed unnecessary

No, I am taking about the OP.

Definitely less than.

How about if NHS stop overspending on locum doctors and nurses and start taking control by managing teams instead of being friends with their staff. A single locum doctor/nurse costs NHS between 8-10 times more than a single employed clinician. Current team managers behave like friends with their staff and do not focus on performance which results in NHS paying out for the services of a dead rat. I love NHS and believe it is the best service in the world along with some really passionate people serving us. Equally I am very annoyed at how it is still run with large waste on a daily basis be it waste of resources or waste of spend. On a positive note this is still a hot deal and as they say every little helps. Hot from me.

Oh sorry, I completely forgot these threads were patrolled by the punctuation police

Lmao - everything was in surplus when Labour left government apart from (oh yeah) the country. Like spending borrowed money is a great achievement and management. :laughing:

Think you mean PFI not PPI on your other point? :confused:

Healthcare spending is an infinite black hole. The more you spend, the longer people live. The longer people live, the more ill they get for longer at the end. :man:

You have to draw the line somewhere. You are right the government have declined to make a hard decision and raise taxes to fund more. Sadly they have also chickened out of the other decision options of:
> reducing what is provided
> getting people to pay separately in some way
All of these options are deeply unpopular so no decision made & NHS will continue to be asked the impossible with all the little and occasionally very sad and fatal frictions this causes. :disappointed:

What kills me is the total idiots who "travel" by bus or car to the doctor to get these on prescription, probably takes 2 hours to get through the appointment and still think that was cheaper and more sensible than buying a pack themselves when shopping!! The bus must cost £2 at least these days (dont use them so not sure), the government hasnt really advertised the scheme where the chemist can give them to you for free under the Small Ailments Scheme to save the visit to the doctor.

Well said.

You guys have no clue how the system works.

Sorry, as a nurse i have the strange affliction of taking anything that isn't nailed down! If that's wrong then lock me up and nail the key down.

Everyone going on like buying a couple of pills going to save the NHS, NHS has far more serious problems than people getting prescription pills.

Check out the ingredients on the supermarket brand items - I buy their cold relief capsules which are I think about 65p a pack and they contain the same ingredients as named brand items for three times the price.

You Want treatment ? Show your passport (UK ONLY) and if you can't then you don't get treatment. Simple as.

That will claw back hundreds of millions from people who are not entitled to treatment.

Remove all the comsultants who are overpaid and lazy and watch the health service return to a better state.

Think you'll find that if the true figures for non-doms using the NHS (either from the EU or outside ) were published there would be a public outcry. The NHS was conceived to give treatment at the point of need - which was a great idea at the time. These days the world and our country has changed, and so have the attitude of the people. They demand treatment not for illness or injury, but for self indulgence such as plastic surgery to increase their self confidence or a gastric bypass because they're too damn lazy to lose weight themselves. Tattoo removal is another. Add to all this the never ending queues of people from overseas who haven't paid a penny into our system and you can see why the NHS is doomed to fail, unless a drastic solution is found.

All right if you want cheapo generic paracetamol that doesn't work but if you want proper Panadol it's still expensive.

Apologees for the typos; it's late evening and I've had a long day; I've been busy working 223243 jobs you see.

I'm not a party politics guy; but it wasn't Labour which caused the financial crisis which affected every Western country; it was the greedy bankers and lack of regulation (which is a failure of both Con & Lab). Lets not forget that UK national debt has risen by £555 billion since 2010 not fallen.

If you're going to your gp for any of these drugs then you are part of the problem!
You're probably the sort of person that demands antibiotics for a cold or the flu

nice opening to the title OP :')

Not against this campaign or the idea of saving NHS BUT I'm work with drugs - discovery to development etc. and I firmly advise against buying those cheap 'drugs'. They are synthetic polymers that has low administration time and high impact on kidney filtration rate. Try getting a box of Aspirin from Morissons or ASDA - read ingredients, Talcum is one the many unnecessary, synthetic chemicals that are added to these meds. To give them substance, make them fair and lovely looking. These are made from what we call 'dead stock' of actual medicines. All in all there's papers, reviews and what not if you're really interested. They'll work now and then but they're not exactly 'doing' what they're meant to or doing ONLY what they're meant to be doing to your organs. There might be an alternative not saying I don't support this move of saving NHS and it's funds.

Not against this campaign or the idea of saving NHS BUT I'm work with drugs - discovery to development etc. and I firmly advise against buying those cheap 'drugs'. They are synthetic polymers that has low administration time and high impact on kidney filtration rate. Try getting a box of Aspirin from Morissons or ASDA - read ingredients, Talcum is one the many unnecessary, synthetic chemicals that are added to these meds. To give them substance, make them fair and lovely looking. These are made from what we call 'dead stock' of actual medicines. All in all there's papers, reviews and what not if you're really interested. They'll work now and then but they're not exactly 'doing' what they're meant to or doing ONLY what they're meant to be doing to your organs. There might be an alternative not saying I don't support this move of saving NHS and it's funds.

Plus aeykeay has just completely made a fictitious statement.
I know what a guide F2 (junior doctor) locum rate per hour is - and if you were to pay anything of the magnitude of 6!! times less for a "clinician" (by this, he means a junior doctor or nurse...) then it would be illegal as it would be far below the minimum wage.

Very well wriiten post. Thank you

I may be wrong but I think the person you're replying to was talking more about the folks that could go and get a job, could better themselves and not rely on benefits (however big or small) but can't be arsed. They're the people abusing a welfare system that was set up originally to help those who you're talking about and who can't work or have poorly paid jobs etc.

Oh I thought this was a deal about pain relief, not a slagging off thread for professions and social class. But good old JSA people with their fags, booze, flat screens, let's not forget the ponies and goats in the garden too, always take a battering.

*waves at David Cameron*

BTW if your asthmatic it is advised not to take ibuprofen

How is this going to save the NHS from going bust? aren't these made by seperate manufacturers and tested by a government sector, not our health service?

In Iceland too

i'll stick to prescription thanks

mmm Try having Crohn's Disease & tell me that fibromyalgia don't exist!

I've always worked & paid my dues. Not claimed DLA yet as I don't want to be more of a drain than I am with a Disease that is not of my doing or any known cause!

There'd be more than enough money to fund the NHS if this government did the decent thing and compelled their wealthy friends and corporations like Apple/Amazon/Starbucks etc to pay the correct level of taxation.

My point was that no-one should have to pay prescription charges - the NHS should be properly funded through taxation/NI contributions

Paracetamol are always helpful. Will pick up two boxes.

Yes OP but Asda will only sell me one mingy 16 pack!

on prescription I can get my full overdose on one order, which on the long run would be cheaper for the NHS...

Crohns isn't fibromyalgia, I have IBS and have to have 12 loperamide a day and don't claim to have "fibromyalgia". I also have life threatening allergies and am a severe Asthmatic. My point is Fibromyalgia is specifically non specific which makes it easy for people to claim as anything can be a symptom. I know what it is to have illness. Maybe it is just when I see someone say "oh I can't cope today I am aching all over, I have fibromyalgia" ok I'll do the dishes.

Edit: Funny thing is I didn't say it doesn't exist but that is my point exactly.

How on earth is this so hot? It's just a list of crap medicine that has always been available for very cheap.

You should never even use paracetamol and ibuprofen unless you desperately have to. A) it seems like it never actually really helps and instead relies on the placebo effect. B) Don't put drugs into your body if you can help it! These things still have side effects and they cause your body to rely on medicine, making your immune system weaker. The best medicine is a healthy diet - lots of natural, non-GM fruits and veg.

The NHS will never have 'more than enough money'.

There will always be more wonderful work it can do to keep people alive and healthier for longer and lots of magical new tech and drugs that can help as part of this.

What is 'properly'? What £ number is that?

Um....sorry to break up the novelty post party but aren't they always this price? I was under the impression the idea of the site was for stuff that isn't usually a particular price.

Voted cold, sick of seeing this type of tripe on top of the deals list. Disappointed with the mods for letting it happen and not either forcing change of title to "Asda paracetamol 500mgs x 16 19p" or just deleting it entirely.

I feel you're pain. I really do.

I know Crohn's is not fibromyalgia however Crohn's is a disease that keeps on giving, as us Chronies put it, unfortunately fibromyalgia is connected as a symptom along with numerous other bodily symptoms. It's a ****. I should have shares in Andrex by now!

Dominatez, please show a bit of respect. Amazing how a good deal could turn into this much hate.

I'm a foreigner who has been contributing to the system for 15 years, and have only seen a doctor a handful of times.

By your theory I have no right to the treatment I've contributed to? Why cause I'm not British?

I was thinking about this today while driving home from work.
Since the Tories came to power they have
1. made drastic cuts to public services,
2. cuts to income support and benefits and
3. raised VAT up to 20%.

That last point alone will have made a net income of tens of billions (maybe hundreds!) - think of how many VAT chargeable items are sold every single day, and how much extra money that has made the treasury since VAT was raised from 15 to 20%.
Funny though, that that wasn't enough.

Point 1, They have also slashed billions from vital services, leaving our health and protection services in a critical state, forcing hospitals to close and downgrade. I would love to know how much that has saved (truthfully), but that wasn't enough either!

Yet, - we are told we are still in a mammoth amount of debt. Someone, has to be lying - money just doesn't vanish into thin air. But there again, this is why i absolutely hated the liars Osborne and Cameron. I diddn't trust either of them from the moment they stepped foot into No.10.

As usual they work with their media friends, telling us all to look at the unemployed, the refugees, the immigrants, the disabled, the young struggling to find a job...don't look up at the super wealthy, and the politicians, doing nasty deal to let them off millions in tax, let's harass the guy getting seventy quid a week, because it's the poor who've bankrupted the country, clearly.

​Well whoever is giving him 14k credit after his 20k wiped off are stupid!

Wales' top-paid locum doctor paid £183,000 in 2015-16. It is just a LOCUM doctor. His wage can buy 1 Million pack paracetamol. Connect them all together is about 100km long. The top 5 locum doctors in wales are
£183,000 Aneurin Bevan Uni Health Board
£159,000 Aneurin Bevan
£144,000 Aneurin Bevan
£137,000 Betsi Cadwaladr
£133,000 Aneurin Bevan

Now you know one reason why NHS is bankrupt. It is not just because of the overseas or EU patients.

Great post

+1 on this not being the place for peoples blogposts. Cold & spammed.

Thats a job description for one of the phoney posts that they invent and then play musical chairs on. You can employ 10x the amount of doctors and nurses on the ground and do what the NHS was meant for which is look after those who need it.

Doctors aren't encouraged to prescribe paracetamol, never have been and I've yet to meet one who's happy to dish it out. The prices that are being thrown around are all a bit over the top and only relate to packs of 100 which aren't 19p anywhere. Doctors are only permitted to prescribe paracetamol as a long term solution if no suitable alternative available rather than a quick fix 16pack for a sore head or day fever as then when you start adding in doctor surgery time, pharmacy staffing and running costs of course it's not going to be under 19p from start to finish. This same story goes about every year and Health Officials seem less bothered than the media as it costs them TWICE as much at their worst, or at least so thats what the officials claim, and the fact they do what they can to limit prescription by only allowing it under certain circumstances leaves only the doctors at fault if the problem is expanding.

I think the whole point of bringing it up again and again is to create awareness and encourage people to think twice before using any NHS service and expecting pill handouts rather than to try and save the world by promoting low quality pain pills that can damage your liver if used incorrectly or extensively and lead to higher NHS costs. I'd say it's more to make people aware that using GP and pharmacy time can be costly if all you have is a minor issue that could've been sorted with some cheap pills and rest. My doctor has told me for at least ten years to buy my own pain killers when I mention any pain issues and I've never questioned him for a freebie. It's nothing new, in Scotland at least, but then again the statistics I keep seeing only seem to mention England.

I'd say it's a disease that hasn't been proven yet rather than can't be proven. Remember that a lot of people have said similar things about a lot of illnesses before they were a proven thing.

While I agree with the spirit of this, I disagree that the way to save the NHS is to stop using it. We have to just realise that money that could be spent on NHS is spent elsewhere. If there was money to bail out banks then there should be money for an institution that literally saves lives.

Actually national debt has tripled under the Conservatives.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_national_debt

There is no excuse for this. Labour plunged the country into a deficit to bail out the banks. Whether you like it or not, it was necessary. The Conservatives responded by cutting taxes for the top 1% and businesses and then borrowing to plug the gaps and reduce the deficit and now national debt is EIGHTY PER CENT of GDP.

Labour didn't do anything. That's just Tory rubbish.

Not a deal

You know who should pay? That bit** that got breast enlargement paid for through NHS. She's probably whoring herself out and making loads more.

the NHS needs complete reform and to pay the going rate for all supplies they bring in.

if a consumer can buy XYZ cheaper than the NHS then that's really saying something, if a wholesaler can buy in cheaper than the HNS then that is saying something.

But it'll never happen, way too many fingers in too many pies.

Becoming a preferred supplier to the NHS for ANYTHING from toilet paper to high end medical equipment is essentially having a blank cheque in your name

Home bargains also sell cheap hayfever and anti allergy tablets.

Home bargains also sell cheap hayfever and anti allergy tablets.

I can't believe that I've read every single comment.

Labor and Tory governments poked the holes in the bucket, now the water can be collected by their corporate chums instead of wasting away in the bucket being used by the peasants.

Anybody a Pharmacologist here, i need some help on my essay.

Just a shame we cant buy Amoxicillin or other penicillin based drugs without a prescription. They literally cost pennies

From my perspective we don't have one, I was admitted to cardio emergency ward with tachycardia and atrial fibrillation a few weeks ago, accept the cardo ward refused me entry because I wasn't sick enough, A&E told me to go to ACU because I had been referred by a doc therefore A&E was inappropriate, ACU told my to go back the cardio ward and ask to be admitted again. After one hour thirty minutes of pacing around the hospital being palmed off I got a taxi to a hospital 20 miles away, 2 hours 30 mins I went without treatment, I was lied to and generally treated like crap (Royal Liverpool Hospital).

GP, has ignored all my cardio warning signs attributing them to anxiety despite no history of anxiety and no actual anxiety (to be expected when they receive bonuses for meeting targets to reduce referrals), I've had to fight hard for the couple of specialists I've seen over the years for heart problems and chronic gastric symptoms and obstructive sleep apnoea, if they can't ease your symptoms with a pill they're not interested.

Currently looking to go private so I can get some answers about my heart. The NHS is already finished, it's just a cash cow for politicians chums whose companies come in to build nice fancy buildings with all your tax money, god forbid they spend any of that money on staffing.

Big thanks to HUK genius '2minutenoodles' with their professional medical opinion there... I can make a fake DLA claim by pretending I'm mentally ill, that does not cast any doubt on the legitimacy of mental illnesses, same for back pain and other illnesses.

That was a thoroughly dimwitted argument and you made a clown of yourself by airing that jelly-brained thought process in public.

I care about my half baked opinions and so should you.

the problem with the NHS is echoed across the world be it a bank, government or firm;
Greed
Laziness
Incompetence
Complacency

Big up to the people on the front line doing the graft and the rest......shame on you

Stupid people and their stupid regurgitated views from the sun, daily mail and express, the NHS is going to **** thanks to old people who enjoyed the good years and refuse to die since neither heaven or hell wants boomers.

The government wont fund it and enjoy virgin healthcare since it's coming to a hospital near you.

Starve the beast baby.

Gps agouldnt give it out on prescription. While I was working at a GP's surgery our doctors refused to do it

Anyone who goes to the GP for a cold is an idiot.

I have M.E. and work full time and it is not fake or a mental illness. It is viral and I was left with it after getting glandular fever. I am in constant pain. Christ on a bike this site is full of morons.
I am also transgender and don't get any help from the NHS (pay privately). Care to offer an opinion on this. You both probably go to the GP every time you have a sniffle.

Gosh !! well getting back to the OPs original post.

I was in Morrisons the other day and their box of 16 Cold Relief Capsules was 64p amazingly sold next to big named brands costing a lot more so worth a look.

I was unaware of the PL number info very useful just googled the PL code for this product PL12063/0003 and its amazing what information comes up and variation in cost.

Some interesting comments should be forwarded on to the health secretary !!!

Don't get worked up about it mate, we the public are ALWAYS looking for the blame of why they are not getting "something" that someone else is or why there isn't enough to go round.I have read a couple of pages of comments and it's all here on a plate. It's immigrants fault. It's NHS managers fault. It's disabled people's fault. blah blah blah

It's the way we have been engineered to think so that we ignore the real reasons we are being told that there is going to be no NHS, no state pension, and not enough police. We are constantly being told that such and such is the boogey man this week and we as a nation buy into it almost consistently without fail.

We could save the UK a fortune if ministers actually held some kind of qualification in the position they held - running for a MP's seat a candidate should stipulate the professional qualification/experience and what ministerial seat they wanted and how that and their plan would benefit the country.


Jobs for the boys cabinet selection is just draconian, undemocratic and wastes money and time.


Us at the bottom need to demand change, universally.

I always buy my medicine from the pharmacy , not because i want to save NHS no but its easier than asking my Wonderful GP ( sarcasme) at least my pharmacist say never NO , And INMO i think we should privatise the NHS like in USA or The EUropean countries like France , etc.. where you pay upfront the GP 25 euros or Any Hospital treatment even A&E . you receive a nice invoice after few days . i think we should not have any problem with funds dont we ?

i use to live 20 years in France BTW

i agree the dole system and the Medical systeme need to change here ... i work full time and pay tax .... too much

i only go see gps for my sick notes lol not to get treated thanks to my company private insurance i go private hospital lol haha

Wow. 2000 degrees for name dropping the NHS and dropping the bombshell that asda's paracetamol is cheaper than a prescription. I decided not to read too many of the comments, don't need yet another reminder of how many selfish, intolerant twonks there are.

Supermarkets have always sold generic painkillers. Bolt on a story about saving the NHS and suddenly people are falling over themselves saying what a brilliant deal this is.

I must be missing something.

Chicken Fillets £4 for 4 at Tesco. Another cost saving tip for the NHS :smirk:

Yup. Nhs being fleeced by multinationals. Time to hand over nhs buying to the boss of farmfoods.

Socialised healthcare is a failure. The more tax payers money that is put into it results in no improvements. Free market insurance based healthcare results in lower tax and better treatment.

Yep! Always buy the cheap ibuprofen :smiley:

If you check the drug id number, you will find lots are exactly the same & just reboxed for certain ailements like a cold/flu symptoms at higher price.

Just because it cannot be proven, does not mean it does not exist.
However, it does mean it may well be something that can be faked.
I suffer from Costochondritis - it's only diagnosed as that when they can't find anything else wrong!
Does not mean I run to the pill cabinet every few hours when I get a flare up.
Long term use of paracetamol can damage your liver.

I would rather the NHS die. I pay so much towards it and it isn't worth it. I would rather we all have to pay for medical insurance. It works out cheaper and you get a better service. However I'm not prepared to pay towards the NHS AND medical insurance on top of it.

wife works hor one of the big pharmaceutical company's and pay is good so cold from me

Those who are complaining about a lack of funding from government:
What additional percentage of your income have you given voluntarily given to the government to help support public finances?
What about to your local NHS trust?

Or is it all "someone else's problem"?

A lot of people talk the talk for higher taxes, but very few put their money where their mouth is before being forced to.

It would be for the best if the NHS was gone. The quality of service is below par anyway. I'd rather have an option to get a proper private insurance than being covered by the government. Therefor cold.

I've never met a doctor who would consider using a prescription for commonly sold medicines.

I've always had to pay for prescriptions, but obviously that info isn't available to doctors when they're writing prescriptions, so shouldn't be affecting decisions.

Not saying it doesn't happen, but I'm surprised. Clearly the NHS is badly suited to providing benefits like free prescriptions for items which are available much cheaper anywhere else.

One of the things that happens when you strip away all the layers of management "waste", is you find that doctors etc start surrendering more time on paperwork and admin than being able to treat people.

Same thing happens with teaching.

Waste sucks, but someone has to provide the support roles so that the "real" workers can operate efficiently.

I do have an option to get an ADDITIONAL insurance. I believe it would be fair that in that case the government would lover the taxes for that person. As some of the older data show (2012), that 5% of your yearly salary goes to NHS. For what? For "GPs" and "doctors" telling to have some paracetamol? Please. I would rather spend that money on a private insurance and let NHS go to hell with all that under-qualified staff.

A friend of mine had just found out that his high price private health insurance won't cover treatment for his son who thought to be autistic... Early and effective treatment is crucial to ensure as normal a life as possible, but they won't cover him.
Guess where he's going to get something done?

Would you be willing to forgoe all treatment from other sources if it were found that your insurance didn't cover you for certain conditions or treatments?

I wouldn't bother, you are arguing with someone repeating what they read in their Daily Mail six years ago and thinking they are well informed. Maybe Labour could have been accused of some unwise spending and too many managers? But we have had six years of Conservative ministers running the NHS now, it's underfunded - would say deliberately so.

I thought the NHS has plenty of money now after they got all the billions saved from Brexit? :laughing:

You would pass with flying colours too.

Everyone working at pharmacy knows how millions of people are abusing the system by sucking tax payers money in the form of benefits... I remember one of my friend used to tell me the real example.. 'when a young man come to the pharmacy with a prescription I said oh! you can buy this without prescription! Then that patient replied' I don't pay for my medine, it's free(no its not, it's paid by tax payers money which has been taken from them)'.Now,when I ask them to sign the exemption at the back of the prescription' he asked for the pen and left his BMW key on the side and proudly marked benefits box'. This tells us that 1 or 2 out of 10 are genuinely disabled/needs our help, otherwise all are very healthy but just don't want to work as they can get more benefits by NOT working than working 40 hours/weeks. Many Tax payers are still renting a flat while these thieves are enjoying whole 4 bedroom house for free and going on holidays every season. Also, they have iPhone 7 while tax payers have to wait few years to get a new phone. NHS should be private, in fact there shouldn't be a NHS. Every time I ring my surgery, I have to wait 5 days before I see my GP, while these thieves are there every day blocking all appointments just for paracetamol.

For what? Well, if you got run over the NHS would be pretty handy. The private sector doesn't do emergency care.

You do realise that private healthcare insurance doesn't cover pre-existing conditions? In the US there are thousands of families that have had to sell their family homes when they have had an unfortunate health episode. Think of it like car insurance - any excuse they can find to not pay a claim or to increase your premium, they will do it.

I am not actually anti-private sector, i have used the French system and found it excellent. But in this country, we wouldn't get the French system as a replacement for the NHS, we would get the US system. This is because the big US health companies lobby mps and ministers, many of whom are very free market orientated in any case - this points to US style, not European.

Fantastic idea for a post, hope people listen!

Being scammed by the big pharmas doesn't help.
2,600% price gouging

Is not just cost.... I often have as many as 8 a day most days . There's a convenience and availability factor. If I run out which I frequently do when I have to rely on shops as you can only buy 2 packs at a time ,then i can't manage my symptoms .
Don't tar everyone with the same brush.
BTW, I pay for my prescriptions.

Fair enough- that makes some sense.

The NHS trusts would probably be better off just stocking a large cupboard of cheap medicines at each GP surgery, and just handing them out for free without prescription in these cases.

I'm sure that there are admin reasons why this isn't done, but it should be possible to deal with stuff like giving away free (cheap) medicines without using an expensive process.

I'm Scottish, so free prescriptions. I don't agree that it should be free, if you can afford to pay then you should. Whenever I collect a prescription for myself, which is probably once every few years (thankfully), I always donate to the charity tin in the chemist due to feeling guilty.

Currently the US is not a good example of a competitive private healthcare system because of Obamacare e.g. Insurers cannot provide plans across state lines and this dramatically reduces competition: higher premiums.

Of all the things I like about the UK, the NHS is what I will miss the most. It's like a safety blanket for health care, but saying that, the US has a lot more specialist care, but it will cost you if you're not insured.

For anyone thinking of moving there, get a job which includes health coverage. Any job which is worth having should offer it as part of your employment.

I hope your friend gets the care they need.

Voted hot, may help some people.

However, the real issue here at play across the board is the Barnett formula, as residents of the united kingdom we are very expensive.
We cost on average 8000 each per person per year in england, there is 4 of us in our household, that would mean we would have to pay back in tax - income and vat 32000.
At the moment my wife pays no tax or very little as a full time level 3 teaching assistant, she receives 11500 per year.
I am a local wagon driver earning 23500 per year, this means we pay approximately 3000
Per year in income tax and approx 2500 in vat per year, so we are giving 5500 to the government, yet we are costing on average as a family 32000 - 5500 = 26500 deficit.

In short mainly because of living and working in a low wage, high cost of living country and economy there is nowhere near enough money going back into the countries pockets, also of course due to the fact that corporations pay top accountants to fiddle their tax contributions.

So in short we are extremely lucky, but as long as wages remain stagnant and no real growth, we are on the hard working financial treadmill... A lot of effort but we are not getting anywhere.
Personally the wife is training as a teacher but that's another 4 years away, I am about to go and work away as a wagon driver, we didn't want to have to do this but needs must, we can no longer manage really,we also have aspirations.
We don't qualify for prescriptions, tax credits, dentistry, school meals, nothing.
We are on over 30000 so don't qualify.

But chin up, we are grafters and we will get there.

I'm pleased you have found another job now. The whole experience must have been awful enough, without idiots like the guy above insulting you too. We all have bad luck and are entitled to a bit of help and respect.

Sorry I pay for the NHS so I will use it as much as needed.... they need to stop doing free work for foreigners

I agree with "furiousjammin" some people do not want to work because they get as much from benefits. The benefits scheme need massive cuts . No one on benefits should be getting more than some working on minimum wage.

I assume you mean food vouchers? Trivial to bypass, they just swap them, or what they buy, for fags, same as in the USA. There's no point proposing a fix which has already been shown to be a failure in other countries.

And you don't think someone who has a bit of bad luck and needs help should get it? Like the guy above? The first thing you want to do for them is call them a scrounger etc etc? Fair enough then.

He probably meant illegal immigrants. Tho I am not sure if they can get any NHS service.

Or the government could just make the rich and big corporations like google pay their taxes and close the offshore accounts loopholes and use the hundreds of billions in lost tax revenue. But them that wouldn't be in their interests as they get paid and work for the big corporations!!! This government want the NHS to collapse so that they can privitise it so that their business associates can control and monopolize the health service so that they can have complete control on pricing. Making healthcare available only for the wealthy whilst the rest of us perish. If we want to save the NHS we have to get the Torys out folks!!!

The only way this will save the NHS is if we all overdose.

Good deal, though!

Why should my taxes go towards the health of other people. I want a system where I can truly take responsibility for my own healthcare. I don't want to subsidise spongers.

By Tory I assume you include Blair governments too, but that's a different debate.

It is exactly this. Successive governments willing the NHS to fail so eventually the public beg for it to be privatised.

Why does the government not have their own private pharmacies then?if they put their foot down and say we are not going to pay you.£8.20 for something that costs less than a pound but the government is too lazy to do that.if you go to lot of Far East countries more than half the pharmacies are government owned.they should take a leaf out of their book.

Would it be so wrong to pay contributions towards doctors visits/ other medical care? I know I come from a country which has deductibles if you have insurance.

If we tell people they need to pay a £10 charge for doctors visits or ER care, would it not reduce people going in for the sniffles or a broken fingernail? Thus reducing the burden on the NHS for non essential care.

It's a constant battle I have with my wife (British). She thinks the kids have a sniffle, let's go to the doctors, where I am of the opinion it needs to be worse than the sniffles to warrant a visit to the doctors. So she is used to having the system there, where I am used to health care being a premium you only use if required.

The current system seems to be open to abuse as people will go for any issues serious or not.

I've worked pharmacy for 14+ yrs and it's disgusting how the government bring in schemes (minor ailments) or allow prescriptions for such trivial things such as E45, allergy tablets and a wide range of things. The amount of prescribing for baby milk, bread, even pasta. I understand people can be affected by gluten but back in the day you had to buy all the things yourself. In my opinion Things like that should be on a private prescription not a green doctors one. Sometimes it's cheaper on a private prescription, what's that say about our government??

Why is everyone so confused about the cost of 20p paracetamol costing 8 quid?
It doesn't cost the NHS 8 quid to buy the tablets, it costs pennies. But the cost of the doctor, the pharmacist, the pharmacy staff, the pharmacy itself, the insurance, the parking the electricity the processing of the prescription, the checks ....

I imagine it's more complicated than that. Not defending the model buts it's probably a method to fund the pharmacists as they do provide a national network of care.

It wouldn't neccesarily be cheaper for the gov to do it. Think of all the free holds/leases the gov would have to buy. With the current model at least phamarcys are part funded from their overpriced ibuprofen, perfumes etc.

Really... bit of a fantasy post

This isnt a deal,

No here one is 'saving the NHS from bankrupcy'

A whole lot of 'morality heat' lol

Cold. Standard price. Not a deal.

First factual comment ive read lol

Im farilyk certain most people don't realise the £8.20 we pay in England to pharmacies is basically just the Pharmacy collecting tax for the government with their income coming from The NHS / government book price for each individuals drug on prescription

Walked past some Nurofen in the Co-op last week. £3.99!! :confused:

Admire the OP for posting as it's known a 19p pack of paracetamol costs the NHS about £10 on prescription apparently. A lot of problems lie with people who attend A&E for things that could be treated at home or elsewhere or by NHS 111. Saw a picture which indicates treatment costs to the purse and every ambulance callout is about £240+ and walking into A&E costs typically £124!

If you wake up with suspected appendicitis, don't go to see a GP, go straight to A&E!

Yes but in my experience they also tell you it's cheaper to go and buy yourself from Boots etc. So they give you the prescription (if you wish) and advise you it's cheaper to buy without it, if applicable.

£60 - £70 a week?! Ha ha, try multiplying that by 5 at least when you build in housing benefit, council tax reduction, free school meals, free prescriptions, free bus travel (wales) ... Don't believe the loony left, that the people on benefits are all living off food banks. My parents live in an estate where nearly no on works, they all have iphones, flat screens and the latest technology. And maybe you should read the reply, it may open your eyes to eh reality !

Bang on

Sorry, but where I live the people who use food banks are the same ones who prop up pub doorways, or think it's their human right to spend taxpayers money on cigarettes (never mind they usually have children who would be happy if the fag money was spent on stuff for them instead) and cases of beer so the parents ''can relax at home because it's too expensive to go to pubs'' !!
I live in a smallish place where everyone knows everyone else, and nobody here is starving, neither were they starving before food banks - the only ones who struggled were those I've already described, as well as those who squandered their money on needless things and you'd see them with the newest phones glued to their ears on calls which all cost money.
In addition, there are asylum seekers near here who regularly queue up at the post office to send money overseas, and some of them even drive a car.............. is that also their human right as well, to spend taxpayers money in that fashion ?

Take a look on ebay, the amount of sellers on there selling NHS stuff is awful, like NHS only hearing aid batteries in packs of 120, obviously NHS workers stealing them.

The issue is one of total *mismanagement* of the NHS. Not exactly of paracetamol. More buying power means NHS must get better deal then supermarkets - obviously.
The -mismanagement- in the NHS is about:
1) payment massive salaries for the managers etc
2) corrupt inside dealings with back-hand payments or payments in kind between the purchaser and drugs sellers.
3) over prescription - (sometimes the patients have stopped using but still gets the medicine because it is still in the prescription). There is nobody to check if the patient is still using that is the flaw in the system. It is not always the patients fault either. The patient has medical issues and the surgeries also do not always cancel immediately when informed.
4) health tourist from abroad
5) excessive immigration from abroad who have not paid into the system
6) In many cases "use-by date" is wrong. Many drugs can still be used after the said date. The drug sellers have made it so that the drugs are thrown away too early. Quick money for drug companies - and more waste for NHS.
7) Inferior drugs prescribed that do nothing for the patient
:sunglasses: there needs to be also alternatives like ayurvedic medicines they actually *do work* and are cheaper for the nhs eg. Himej. Think-out-of-the box solutions are absolutely required if we really care for NHS.
9) many drugs need to made available to be sold on counters eg amoxicillin so that will release the pressure on getting from doctors for common ailments eg chest infection. Let us not forget we want to save NHS - some drastic changes are required. This will also ease pressure on going to see doctors for anything and everything.

So you agree with me :smiley: It is the cost of smoking, inactivity and elderly care that weighs most on the NHS.

But we have to be careful where to lay the blame.

Smoking is on the wane but it's addictive and needs more education and direct action to try to stop it. Bear in mind that is used to be encouraged, and the tobacco companies are massively powerful.

Inactivity is again something that you think is an individual's problem but why has our traffic policy made very little provision for cycling over the past 20 / 30 years - look at Dutch cities - everyone goes around on bike, no helmets, no hi viz, simple functional bikes, dedicated lanes, traffic lights, junctions - consequently, journeys under 5 miles are easier on bike! And obesity is low. Why are fast food giants allowed to spring up everywhere and target audiences? Why is it deemed a cheaper option for those close to poverty to get a bucket of poor quality chicken rather than make a lentil broth? Government needs to address and answer these social issues.

Elderly Care - it's an absolute disgrace that so many bus services / community care services / local social care services have been axed off the back of the last years of austerity. Funds are simply cut and diverted away from these services. That in turn pushes it onto the NHS. That breaks it because it is not designed to be that service. We need far, far better support in the community to turn that around. At the moment, it's people volunteering that is sticky plaster trying to keep it together. That is a massive issue that the Government are not addressing. They appeal to the pensioner through other means(pensions etc) and sneakily cut the real local support. They are quite happy for every blue rinse's favourite rag, The Daily Mail, to blame it all on immigration. What about all the retired in Spain? We don't pay for their medical - how much do you think we cost over there?


Expanding a little on that last point, I posted earlier about the cost of the reciprocal health care across the UK / EU. The figures suggest that the UK pays £1 for non-doms compared with EU paying £5 for UK non-doms.... We have to be careful to see the full picture. We all have access to EHIC which grants us full NHS type rights anywhere in the EU and seeing as we go on a lot more holidays than most other countries, we are massive winners with the current arrangement.

What is almost a certainty is that should we lose this reciprocal arrangement, it will be the public who then have to fund their own medical bills / increased insurance.

Therefore, it's hard to conclude that the current arrangement is anything other than a good deal for the UK when considering the alternative.

Christ, what a load of waffle - sorry :smiley:

Am I actually reading this correctly?
Over 2000 degrees on a something that has been normal price for years!
'Oh thanks op, for all these years I have been picking up the expensive branded paracetamol that sit millimetres next to these very cheap ones'

Take a look on ebay, the amount of sellers on there selling NHS stuff is awful, like NHS only hearing aid batteries in packs of 120, obviously NHS workers stealing them.

It's the drug companies that over charge the NHS . They are the main dealers !

You votes tories you gets no NHS

But as per usual neglicting to analyse your golden stats.
Benefits are paid out to people without them contributing in. Pensions are out to people who have paid in for many many years.
You have just taken the paid out part for your argument and completely forgotten about how much has been paid in.
The point of your argument being then that a person who pays into a pension for 40 years, retires and starts getting paid back mostly their own money is a scrounger. And someone that pays nothing in and takes money out indefinitely is a much more an upstanding member of the community.
Nice one genius.

Can't believe that a comment so wrong got so many likes.

That the NHS is over-managed is a myth that has been demonstrated to be untrue by an analysis by The Kings Fund. It is, in fact, under-managed which is every bit as inefficient as being over-managed but "NHS appoints more managers" is a too poisonous a headline for them to do very much about it.

I don't get it, the NHS surely must buy paracetamol on a larger scale than all the supermarkets combined. They must be getting it even more cheaply than the supermarkets, unless their procurement people are on the other sort of drugs?

Even more bargains at Aldi, as you'd expect!

The next president really should be a native American, but let's not forget all the shouting about rights for blacks, whites, Hispanics etc, when in fact it's the rights of the original inhabitants which are often ignored, and have been ever since they had their lands taken away and forced to live in reservations.
But if we stick to the present day situations, then at least those across the pond could vote for someone not on the usual voting lists, and who said it like it was, so the 'average citizen' could vote against uncontrolled immigration if that is what they wanted to do, and around half of the voters voted for the Donald.
When you think that a turkey is unlikely to vote for Christmas, it shows exactly what the majority of descendants of the pioneers thought, whether the lefties like it or not,

Why don't you believe it? Unfortunately, simple analysis of the costs is not the first initiative. There is plenty of info around on the NHS costs and the areas that are rising but the overall picture is very rarely painted.

It's a shame, but media outlets cannot rely on their circulation sales anymore and so have to drive their online "click-bait" associate funding. To do this, they need to present ever more outrageous claims.:disappointed:

The Kings Fund are funded by the Department of Health with an agenda to privatise the NHS and charge you every time you have anything to do with it.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/gary-walker/kings-fund-suggests-nhs-fees-but-is-it-really-independent

If a contract is signed to supply something at a high price, when the cost is actually rather low, that leaves a lot of spare money to grease palms or send cases of wine etc - try reading Private Eye for a few issues, and see if you don't get angry about all of the corruption. I stopped reading a few years ago when I realised there was little the average person could do about it.

Crikey!! Just reading the news - and this paragraph below.....And we wonder what is costing the NHS? We need as a nation to address this timebomb. It's insanity to ignore it....And I do not blame individuals, these are social problems that come about from poor funding, education and policy. People have got to be encouraged or incentivised to become more active / eat less. Likewise, something has to be done about our addiction to crap food. (I include myself because despite cycling to and from work, 120 odd miles a week, I still have a 36" waist. I just eat too big portions and I snack).

Quote:
Nearly half of men and a third of women aged 50 to 70 are overweight in terms of body mass index (BMI), a measure of fat based on weight in relation to height, Dame Sally said in her annual report.

However, these figures rise to 80 per cent and 92 per cent when waist circumference is considered. So-called central obesity is defined as measuring 40 inches or more in men and 34 inches or more in women around the midsection of the abdomen in line with the navel.

Also it's so much cheaper for people to buy kids paracetamol and ibuprofen then to get it on minor elements it costs the nhs more then it does to but a bottle over the counter

Trump is better than the whole Brexit thing.

True that they are less than neutral but their report on NHS management is both valid and accurate.

I need these this morning!

You know Food Banks existed and were busy BEFORE the benefit sanctions came about - one didn't cause the other.

Please provide sources for points 2, 4 & 5 which show they're a significant reason for the problems in the NHS.

Any system - yes, any system - provided for the benefit of others will have those determined to exploit it.

That does not mean we throw the baby out with the bathwater and fail to provide help for the people that need it. If we can all afford multiple flat screen TVs and the latest mobile phones, we can afford to look after our vulnerable.

Great post. NHS needs to sack the overpaid a$$holes and make their own generic drugs instead of paying to companies who overprice their tablets.

They wouldn't be aware of the £20k being written off. An IVA stays on a credit file for six years from when it commenced.

Who goes to the Dr's for paracetamol?

Someone should send this to the house of commons and Downing street.

Wouldn't people rather save money for themselves? I'm for prescription for everything. People pay taxes for this very reason.

Besides, saving money is the main reason for this site..

Going to have to vote this icing cold.

Sorry.

I'll get my coat..

One of the big issues is Recruitment Agencies in the health sector. Nurses are earning over a thousand pound working a weekend shift, then you can double the amount that's invoiced from the agency to the NHS.

Recruitment agencies are leaching the tax payers money more than anything. The NHS is more privitised than you can imagine. I know of one Recruitment Agency in the health sector that's actually owned by a member of the Conservative party. It's an absolute joke.

Anyone criticising me for not wanting to spend MY OWN money on providing healthcare for strangers (many of whom are foreigners) I expect are people who are opening their own doors of their home to let TRAMPS and DOSSERS help themselves to your food and beds?

No - THOUGHT NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

totally agree with this, there is very little anyone can do, too many greedy people/companies about that make us feel we have a voice, but in reality does not get heard over the money they are counting.!

there this NHS problem stated above, new houses that are given green lights despite how much locals protest, yet anything builders/councils want goes ahead and anytime a simple home owner wants to extend or change on their own house has to jump hoops with fees/planning etc etc! sadly nothing will ever change.

This epidemic of white van man humour has to stop.

ah, just looked who the op is! hi! couldn't swap you that flamedeer i needed it.

I love this post!!!! Thanks OP.
Also same price in Aldi (if not slightly cheaper)

Don't forget guys ibuprofen is THE EXACT SAME as nurofen. The name nurofen is what you're paying for. Its the same drug inside that tiny tablet :wink:

Ibuprofen generally better than paracetamol: can't OD, doesn't dehydrate you, less reactive with other substances, better if you've been boozing, also an inti-inflamatory!

Whyyyyyyy

That is not the point, the other money you refer to the £41bn in incapacity benefits, £27bn in Housing benefits also join the pot of money, not just the money spent on the unemployed.

I think in Wales we need to change the free prescriptions. Its Madness.
Even is it a £1.00 it would be more than fair, and they would harvest millions.
ps
It can take 18 months to get counselling in Wales - something wrong somewhere.

very true.

couldn't agree more.

but unfortunately even some voting hot here are abusing NHS when times come to them.

What you have to wonder is, WHY does it cost the NHS £10ish to prescribe paracetamol when you can buy it for 18p. The company they buy them from likely would still only get the 3 or 4p wholesale price, its all the middlemen and red tape within the NHS that bumps up the price.

Not that I agree or disagree on morality and the benefit system. Fact is tho it's more than 60-70.

75£ ish, I dunno current 25+ JSA levels.
100£ rent ish
20£ council tax
Variety of other small benefits, low interest loans, furniture grants, social housing, etc etc etc. Free NHS prescriptions, opticians, dental...

Combine with the fact working simply costs money. Bus, train, fuel, clothing, food rtc.

So theyre getting about 150-200 a week outside London once you factor in paid rent and council tax. Then they don't have all generic work expense, which even for the most frugal is 20 a week alone for bus etc. Not everyone can walk to work.

So, 220 a week relative.
220*52 = 10,400£
Very generic math/rounding. But my point is to day it's just the 75£ a week is wrong, extremely.

So it's not THAT bad, I've lived off job seekers and it's doable. I'd rather work tho, insanely boring not working.

In my opinion, this is a very good post
I am glad that someone had the courage to post this and to remind people not to take things for granted even if its the "hated" NHS.

What would some of us do if there was no NHS anymore.
If we can help it then lets avoid relying onto the NHS.
As individuals we could make an impact no matter how small and leave the resources to people who have no other option but to rely on NHS.

What someone suspects and what they actually have is very different. Fine, clog up A&E with your "appendicitis" which actually turns out to be a bit of gas from your curry last night. But hey, your visit down to A&E was "free" right? No harm done.

why would someone go to the docs or A and E, for paracetamol? that's madness, so inefficient. don't people have better things to do over a 19p packet of tablets? I'm confused, it makes zero sense to me :-/

I'm confused here: for over 65s or 60 for ladies say it £119.30 x 52 = £6,203.60 per annum divided by £108,000,000,000

I'm getting that to 17,409,246 pensioners or approx 27% of the population based on UKs 64.1M

I know folks are living longer but 27% seem excessive.

Asda Paracetamol 500mgs x16 for 19p

No thanks. I prefer 'Pfiser' brand from the NHS for £4.94 = 2600% extortion !

This number also include pension credit, widows pension, widows allowance etc

Loving this thread, there really are some idiots out there. I dont think the post is about the cost of the goods as in saving yourself money. Its saving a service that is overstretched as it is. Giving someone who needs an appointment that ability to get one in a suitable time frame.

If you honestly are willing to wait in a doctors surgery for ages surrounded by properly ill people with bugs that will more than likely be contagious then I would say you value money more than you do yourself. I would say it works out better for all parties to get these items when out doing your shopping as oppose to potentially driving to a surgery to drive to a pharmacy etc etc.

Just picking up on another couple of things, when in supermarkets if the do have a Pharmacy ask for the paracetamol/nurofen from behind the counter rather than off the shelf they can sell them in bigger pack sizes as its a consultative sale. Over use of nurofen potentially causes stomach ulcers - take it from a nurofen fan !

I am glad to see your in a position to be able to afford a few hundred thousand if ever you need some life saving surgery or treatment. Not many are.

Exactly my argument for those who say we should allow as many in, as want to come here - why don't those tree huggers and do-gooders actually sign a contract to allow one person or family (depending on how large their property is), to sleep on their floor or bunk beds, and also agree to financially support those people for food, clothing, education, medical bills etc etc for at least two generations - wonder how many would march in support of refugees and immigrants if they had to personally support them, not just through everyone's taxes ?

Throwing around insults is not an argument.

The NHS wouldn't be able to run without foreigners. All the best doctors are Indian etc. 1.5 million Brits in Spain a lot of whom including myself have used European healthcare and services for free. We are a nation of migrants ourselves. Australia was stolen from the Aborigines, The US and Canada belonged to the Native Americans. The U.K. has colinised over the world by invasion and then stolen those country's resources and enslaved many of its peoples. Your statements are nieve to say the least. I don't blame you. The British people have been dumbed down and sedated with right wing propaganda for decades. My arguments are made rationally and on the basis of historical facts. When things are not going your way the easiest thing to do is demonize the outsider or the foreigner and use them as a scapegoat. It is not the outsider that has caused the mess in this country it is the insiders. The corrupt governments and greedy corporations who avoid paying their taxes. They are living in oppulance whilst we the people suffer.

I use the excellent http://www.myrepeats.com service so saves going to surgery and getting a prescription and get that contagious bug mentioned earlier while waiting to see over worked GP.
All chemists should offer this service.
I also think telephone (ideally video facetime, skype etc) consultations should be increased by GPs to save time money and the upset of being say elderly getting a bus and waiting to see GP while unwell.
My mum can Skype and she is 83 years

"Benefit scroungers" are the reason the prices you and I pay are going up and up. because them "scroungers" are not paying so much to the likes of Sky and Virgin Media and such. those and other companies are seeing a big fall in income. so they make us non "benefit scroungers" pay more!

multiply this over a wide range of services and goods. and we'll soon be paying double for everything because them "benefit scroungers" are not buying anything anymore!

cheapskates! :smiley:

The day they're all given just bread and water. companies and services all over the country would just fold and collapse due to no income from the bread and water people.

The pound sign goes before numbers, not afterwards. We're not in continental Europe!

​No doubt the same community has its fair share of rent to buy shops? its easy to buy all those luxuries when it cost fiver a week..

Who alive right now colonized and took over countries? Was it only Britain that colonized other countries?

Working people fighting with other working people about there is a problem with the NHS. We voted for austerity and that's what we're getting. If you don't like it, emigrate.

If the lazy Brits were forced to work (not those with a genuine problem which prevents them from working) then we could easily do without half or more of the present day overseas workforce.
Fact is that many foreign workers send some money 'back home' to friends and relatives, which would likely be spent in Britain if a local person was forced to do the job, in addition to the worker usually needing less medical help as they would be physically and mentally healthier and happier, so costing the nhs less money.
All in all it really needs a government which will reduce the advantage of staying unemployed and allowing someone from overseas to do the job instead, although they pay taxes, the unemployed Brit is costing money whilst the foreigner often sends money abroad - I live in a smallish place where foreigners, both working and asylum seekers, are sending money overseas from a local post office...... it's a fact as myself and others have been standing behind them whilst they are giving the details to counter staff.

Your administration in Scotland has increased government debt as percent of GDP to levels worse than Greece. That is not caring for people. That is guaranteeing people will suffer in the future when you cannot borrow any more money to fund your economy. Sturgeon has screwed you all and you don't even know it.

​Scotland has no debt and is not allowed a deficit. Perhaps try not just making stuff up.

Are you serious - I'm glad you're not living here any longer ? The best doctors are Indian..... you're 'avin' a laugh ! Have you not read about the number of overseas workers who cannot speak fluent English, and as a result people have died ?
We need to train more staff for the nhs and make them feel valued, like they were many years ago, when it was almost an honour to work in a hospital.
When criminals earn more than a policeman, and drug dealers earn more than a doctor, how can you expect someone living amongst pondlife to think it's a good career move to clean a toilet in a hospital, never mind spend years training to be a nurse or a surgeon ?

Haha, if there was ever a need for academic evidence that we were in a post fact society, it would be this thread!

I am very serious and I am British and I still live in Xenophobic Britain. I can tell you from personal experience that when the NHS saved my daughters life. She was nine at the time. I don't know if it was a coincidence but I can honestly say that the best quality care,advice we got was from the foreign or to be more specific Asian consultants and doctors. I appreciate all NHS staff so much an