NATIONAL ASTHMA CAMPAIGN 1 April 1996

TEL: 0171 288 1869/0171 354 3593

FAX: 01713543728

CHARITY CALLS FOR PRESCRIPTION COSTS TO BE SPREAD BY

MONTHLY PAYMENTS

With yet another rise in prescription costs starting from today, the National Asthma Campaign is calling for an overhaul of the annual season ticket for prescriptions and has launched its own investigation (1) into patient awareness and use of the Government's current scheme.

Prescriptions increase today by 25p to pounds 5.50 an item and the National Asthma

Campaign - which works to improve the lives of the three million people with asthma in the UK - is calling for: -

immediate action by the government to ensure effective promotion of the

prescription season ticket to people with chronic conditions like asthma so that they are aware of its existence and how it can help them save money. * the current system to be reviewed to ensure it is really affordable for people on low incomes and others who find it difficult to afford the frequent prescriptions needed for long-term conditions like asthma.

A telephone poll of 1,000 people - 400 of them with asthma or another chronic condition - conducted on behalf of the National Asthma Campaign reveals that: only half of respondents had heard of the current scheme more than 1 in every 20 who paid for prescriptions could not afford the lump sum payment in order to benefit from the scheme