Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of annually reviewing the prescription charge medical exemption list.

We have made no specific assessment and there are currently no plans to review or extend the National Health Service prescription charge medical exemption list. For those ineligible for an exemption on medical grounds, arrangements are in place to assist with the affordability of prescriptions, including exemptions for which people with a long-term medical condition may already qualify. Approximately 89% of NHS prescription items are dispensed in the community free of charge.