NHS BSA Completely uncaring Exemption Card Fine

[Satonthephone]

So yesterday got in after working 16 hours to a brown envelope and a fine of £134.40 apparently my medical exemption card ran out (did'nt know they did run out no body has ever told me they did) and I certainly haven't ever received a letter telling me that mine was about to expire! the guy at the BSA then told me he can't even find a record of me ever having one which I said was nonesense I had to show my card to the pharmacy when I signed up for them to collect my prescription for me. he explained if I pay the £34.40 that they will drop the fine. I replied why should I pay when I clearly have a life threatening condition he went on to say that it's not the condition that entitles me to free prescriptions it's the card that does! he then added that they are making leap's and bounds in medical science to which I responded I wasn't aware they had found a cure thats great as I won't have to do upto 8 injections per day...... I then asked what happens about my next prescription, he responded well you get a receipt and re-apply for your card if I do so before 28th October that they will refund the money, I told him I can't physically afford to get my prescription its over 10 items(having now checked my represcription paper its actually 15 items) explained I had neuropathy retinopathy which he was clearly un-interested about and just repeated reading I assume his online script. told him that if I can't get my insulins that I would probably end up in a ketoacidosis coma the guy was clearly uninterested and offered no real advice on options I could pursue. so i told him I'm not going to pay the fine and to take me to court to which he repeated out loud what I had said as he typed it out and responded thats fine i've made a note of it on your file just to I feel rub my nose in it further.

 

[Northerner]

So yesterday got in after working 16 hours to a brown envelope and a fine of £134.40 apparently my medical exemption card ran out (did'nt know they did run out no body has ever told me they did) and I certainly haven't ever received a letter telling me that mine was about to expire! the guy at the BSA then told me he can't even find a record of me ever having one which I said was nonesense I had to show my card to the pharmacy when I signed up for them to collect my prescription for me. he explained if I pay the £34.40 that they will drop the fine. I replied why should I pay when I clearly have a life threatening condition he went on to say that it's not the condition that entitles me to free prescriptions it's the card that does! he then added that they are making leap's and bounds in medical science to which I responded I wasn't aware they had found a cure thats great as I won't have to do upto 8 injections per day...... I then asked what happens about my next prescription, he responded well you get a receipt and re-apply for your card if I do so before 28th October that they will refund the money, I told him I can't physically afford to get my prescription its over 10 items(having now checked my represcription paper its actually 15 items) explained I had neuropathy retinopathy which he was clearly un-interested about and just repeated reading I assume his online script. told him that if I can't get my insulins that I would probably end up in a ketoacidosis coma the guy was clearly uninterested and offered no real advice on options I could pursue. so i told him I'm not going to pay the fine and to take me to court to which he repeated out loud what I had said as he typed it out and responded thats fine i've made a note of it on your file just to I feel rub my nose in it further.

Hi Satonthephone, welcome to the forum 🙂 I think you should contact Diabetes UK about this on their helpline. There was a big fuss about this a couple of years back and they weren't supposed to be fining people over this as far as I can remember. Helpline opens on Monday, details here:

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/How_we_help/Helpline/

Let us know how you go on. A lot of people who were diagnosed before exemption cards were brought in never knew they needed one, and many others didn't know they ran out (myself included).

 

[Satonthephone]

Thanks Northerner I'll give that a shot I was also thinking about contacting the local press too as the attitude of the guy from the BSA really had me grating I have a card but unsure where it is and as I said if they had wrote and told me it was expiring I'd have got it updated.

 

[Northerner]

Thanks Northerner I'll give that a shot I was also thinking about contacting the local press too as the attitude of the guy from the BSA really had me grating I have a card but unsure where it is and as I said if they had wrote and told me it was expiring I'd have got it updated.

They are supposed to write to everyone, but I never got a letter. As I recall, they were picking a percentage of prescriptions to investigate and I got lucky, managing to renew my card - it was two years out of date though! 😱 Certainly no need to be nasty when dealing with you, that's out of order

 

[Flower]

This article explains the situation and what you should do to get the charges reimbursed. I hope it helps you.

https://www.diabetes.org.uk/About_us/News/-Victory-in-campaign-to-cancel-diabetes-fines-/

 

[Lucy Honeychurch]

I got fined when first diagnosed and waiting for my card. I wrote to them explaining the situation and the fine was pulled, good luck.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

he went on to say that it's not the condition that entitles me to free prescriptions it's the card that does!

In that respect he is quite right as you have basically signed a statement that you have a valid exemption card when you hadn't got one, they do class it as fraud hence the fine.

Look at the card you say you have and see when it expired.
Hopefully they will let you off the lot and do go to your GP and fill in an application for a new card which then lasts 5 years.

 

[Satonthephone]

@Pumper_Sue Hi Sue I signed that statement believing I am entitled as I thought my card was/is still valid(fraud is when you knowningly sign for something you know your not entitled to). now they pulled the prescription at random that means they can physically see what I signed for which in my case was 2 lots of insulin Solostar and Humolog it will also show the medication and pain relief for the peripheral neuropathy so they can clearly see that 1. I'm Diabetic and 2. I'm entitled to free prescriptions!!! 3. who the issuing doctor is. so when pulling up my file which they did to Issue the Fine that would have also shown my contact details & number and also who my doctor was if they were at all concerned about my health they could have either contacted me directly and informed me my exemption card had expired or contacted my doctor and asked them to let me know. instead they chose to make a fast buck off my ignorance of something that they should have informed me about 1 month before my card expired. the route they have chosen is clearly negative to my health because I've sat here so angry,stressed and upset all day since hanging up the call my blood sugars have been all over the place and not knowing whether my insulin will run out before a new card is issued. as to the date on the card I have no clue I don't carry a wallet and have never needed to carry it as my prescription is electronically sent to my pharmacy and they had my card number on file. I'm not optimistic about been let off due to the assine way that the call was dealt with. and with what I have written above shows that there is a massive lacking of common sense within the department.

@Flower thanks for the link I think I'll contact the helpline on monday tbh I think i'll be banging my head on a thick wall otherwise.

@everyone thankyou i appreciate you all taking the time to respond

 

[AJLang]

Hi Satonthephone this happened to me two years ago ie fine and charge for all of the items on my prescription which I think was 12 items.I had to buy a prepayment medical card (I think that's what they are called whilst I waited for my new exemption card. I did get everything refunded to me but it was very stressful at the time especially as I had another stressful situation going on at the time. Like you a) I didn't know that I had to renew my exemption card (I've been diabetic for 46 years) and b) didn't get a reminder despite having lived at the same address for fourteen years at the time.

 

[Amigo]

The website says they will send a reminder and they should. I've just received mine and been to the surgery to compete a renewal.
No need for nastiness in dealing with you. With type 1 diabetics, it's hard to see why the card isn't issued for life anyway (or until they find a cure for it!).

 

[Maz2]

Sounds like a jobsworth type to me. Cannot see the need to be nasty and unsympathetic to people even if they have made a mistake. I would certainly contact Diabetes.UK . You could always write to your MP too. Having worked in the NHS for 38 years before retirement I know they start taking notice when an MPs letter arrives.

 

[Chris Hobson]

My local surgery has its own pharmacy so that you can get your prescriptions sorted straight away which is very useful. The staff there were very keen to inform me about the fact that I could be fined if my exemption card went out of date. The card does have the expiry date marked on it very clearly and I present it every time that I pick up a prescription even though the staff there know me and so it isn't really required. Regarding your particular case, it is my opinion that the person responsible for this should be fired. This person is not suited to their job and would be better employed cleaning portaloos.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Regarding your particular case, it is my opinion that the person responsible for this should be fired. This person is not suited to their job and would be better employed cleaning portaloos.

I'm sure OP will be delighted with your opinion of them 😱

How to apply for a medical exemption certificate
Ask your doctor for an FP92A form to apply for a medical exemption certificate. Your GP, hospital or service doctor will sign the form to confirm that your statement is correct. At your GP's discretion, a member of the practice who has access to your medical records can also sign the form.

Your certificate will be valid from one month before the date the NHS Business Authrority receives the application form.

The MedEx lasts for five years and then needs to be renewed. You may receive a reminder that your certificate needs to be renewed. If you don't receive a reminder, it's your responsibility to make sure it's renewed.

You can find more information about the application process and refunds on the NHS Business Authority website.

Info taken from here http://www.nhs.uk/nhsengland/Healthcosts/pages/Prescriptioncosts.aspx

 

[Copepod]

I'm sure OP will be delighted with your opinion of them 😱



Info taken from here http://www.nhs.uk/nhsengland/Healthcosts/pages/Prescriptioncosts.aspx

I think @Chris Hobson means that the person who gave the OP a hard time should be redeployed to cleaning toilets, not that the OP should be moved. Perhaps Chris could clarify?

 

[Chris Hobson]

Sorry, I sort of though that was obvious.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

I think @Chris Hobson means that the person who gave the OP a hard time should be redeployed to cleaning toilets, not that the OP should be moved. Perhaps Chris could clarify?

My reply was tongue in cheek as it states quite clearly it's down to the individual to renew their card. 🙂

 

[Matt Cycle]

My local surgery has its own pharmacy so that you can get your prescriptions sorted straight away which is very useful. The staff there were very keen to inform me about the fact that I could be fined if my exemption card went out of date. The card does have the expiry date marked on it very clearly and I present it every time that I pick up a prescription even though the staff there know me and so it isn't really required. Regarding your particular case, it is my opinion that the person responsible for this should be fired. This person is not suited to their job and would be better employed cleaning portaloos.

Chris are you now on diet only for your diabetes? The exemption cards are only for diabetics on medication unless of course it's for another condition. I would imagine anyone on meds for diabetes that comes off them has to hand the card back?

 

[Northerner]

Chris are you now on diet only for your diabetes? The exemption cards are only for diabetics on medication unless of course it's for another condition. I would imagine anyone on meds for diabetes that comes off them has to hand the card back?

Hadn't thought about that. Of course, if England was like Scotland and Wales we wouldn't need the cards in the first place 🙄 Apparently, prescriptions don't actually bring in that much money anyway, with exemptions and pre-payment cards - the bureaucracy will also offset any revenue 🙄

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Chris are you now on diet only for your diabetes? The exemption cards are only for diabetics on medication unless of course it's for another condition. I would imagine anyone on meds for diabetes that comes off them has to hand the card back?

As the certificates are issued for 5 years and it's still in date then Chris is allowed to use it until expires unless he has other conditions such as an underactive thyroid where obviously he would renew as entitled to do so.

 

[Chris Hobson]

It hadn't occurred to me that currently not being on medication would mean that my free prescriptions could be cancelled. I had assumed that the issue was that I had a long term incurable illness. I have also expected my current no medication status would only be a temporary reprieve, review time is almost upon me. I also still have to test my BG level from time to time which requires test strips and lancets. As it is I'm buying my own test strips because I don't like the Nexus tester and have gone back to the Freestyle one.