BBC 2 HEALTH DEBATE - 28 April 2010

On the BBC2 debate today on health between Burnham, Lansley and Lamb one of Andrew Neil’s yes/no questions was whether they would implement free prescriptions for people with long term conditions. The answers were roughly:

 

Burnham – Yes

Lansley – we await Professor Gilmore’s report

Lamb - No

PRESCRIPTION CHARGES UPDATE - Friday 16 April 2010

Over 3,000 ‘Prescription Promise’ supporters recently emailed their MP asking them to support our campaign for Gordon Brown to keep his promise to scrap prescription charges for people with long-term conditions. Thank you very much for taking part.

212 MPs have now signed Early Day Motion 306 calling on the government to keep its promise. You can see if your MP signed the EDM by clicking here. Press coverage of the campaign has also increased thanks to the hundreds of emails that have been sent to local papers. Now we must keep up the pressure during the general election campaign.

The vital change to prescription charges has been stalled as the Government has not yet published or responded to the independent review of prescription charges by Professor Ian Gilmore, President of the Royal College of Physicians. We must now wait until after the general election to see whether the necessary regulations will be changed in Parliament. Until then it is vital that we keep up the momentum of our campaign. Politicians are busy trying to win your vote, so it's the perfect time to make sure they know you want this pledge met by whichever party forms the next government.  Here are three easy things you can do to keep up the pressure: 

Tell them on the doorstep - Your local candidates will be knocking on your doors asking what matters to you in this election and aiming to convince you that they'll represent your views. Not many people will be talking about the unfair prescription charges for people with conditions like MS, Parkinsons disease and arthritis. Be original and tell them that you care about this issue. If you or a member of your family is directly affected by a long-term condition, you could tell them about it to really leave an impression. 

Go to a hustings - There will be a number of question and answer sessions, known as hustings, being held in your area. There could even be a health-specific hustings. Ask the candidates whether they will support free prescriptions for people with long-term conditions. Promises of support that candidates make will be a matter of public record so make sure you take notes to hold them to after the election. Check your local paper for details of your local hustings. 

Influence the leaders' TV debates - You can submit a question to any of the three TV debates between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg. Why not ask them whether they will support the health of millions of people with long-term conditions by scrapping charges for the prescriptions they need to stay well? Click on these links to submit your questions to ITV News  , Sky News and BBC News. Please let us know if you get any commitments from your candidates by emailing guy.slade@tht.org.uk

For more information on our campaign, visit www.prescriptionpromise.org  

Thank you for your support, 

The Prescription Promise Campaign Team

 

Time is running out for the Government to implement free prescriptions for people withlong-term conditions. 


On Monday 1 February 2010 members of the Prescription Promise Coalition gave Gordon Brown a wake-up phone call to urge him to keep the promise he made in September 2008 to make prescriptions for people with long term conditions free.

If Brown does not pass new legislation within the next few weeks, free prescriptions for people with long-term conditions will fail to become a reality before the election – and may not become a reality at all.   

There is still time to make your voice heard. You can show your support by signing the petition registering your concern and sending an email to your MP by visiting the Prescription Promise website: www.prescriptionpromise.org.     

Thank you

The Prescription Charges Coalition