Prescription charges to increase 66%

Charges for prescription medicines for medical card holders are to increase by 66%.

Currently people with medical cards pay €1.50 for every item dispensed to them, subject to a cap of €19.50 per month. But under the new rules, they will have to pay €2.50 per item, with the monthly cap increased by 28% to €25.

The charges are scheduled to come into effect on Dec 1 and are expected to raise €43m for the Department of Health next year. Prescription items were dispensed free to medical card holders up to 2010, when a 50c charge was introduced, capped at a monthly total of €10, so yesterday’s hike represents a five-fold increase in four years.