I'm not sure that I want the task of recording the prescription exemption
status of all my patients... except for those on age exemption and a few
diseases the benefits ones could change at each consultation.
But, since you put a specific memo to me and NHSCCC, could I ask what Read
Codes you wanted to record on your system? There are already Advised to get
"season ticket" and "Advised to apply for free prescriptions". Both sum up
the responsibility in advising patients on prescription charges. Anything
else implies monitoring status and so if you want to record it, then we need
some terms/concepts to record. I'm happy to put them forward if there is
consensus that it is "a good thing"!
Jon
--
Dr Jon Rogers Southmead Health Centre Bristol BS10 6DF
GP and member NW Bristol PCG, Vice Chair Avon LMC, Treasurer BCS PHCSG
Chair GP SWG Read Codes, Member Path Report Implementation Panel,
Medical Advisor AAH Meditel, Member RCGP Health Informatics Task Group
>-----Original Message-----
>From: [log in to unmask]
>[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Adrian Midgley
>Sent: 31 July 1998 13:40
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Pre-payment certificates, fraud, age and status on FP10s
>
>
>The pre-payment certificate for prescriptions is a funny idea - if the
>prescription charge were intended to make people think twice about
>acquiring a prescription for an otc item, then pre-payment is a
>perverse incentive. Considered as a way of capping the cost to an
>individual of treatment of illness it seems more sensible...
>
>But, if we are about to take a better grip on the eligibility of
>patients for free prescriptions, adding age or DoB to FP10s, and
>recording and displaying individuals' exempt status on their FP10s, via
>our practice systems, then we can work smarter here.
>
> memo to NHSCCC and Jon Rogers: do we have suitable
>Read codes for
> prescription exemption, yet? Or shall we do the usual thing of
>inventing a dozen
> different ways of recording it, only to be told a year
>later that
>there is a State
> approved one now?
>
>I would find it convenient to have exempt status recorded, as it would
>simplify the calculation of whether to print each individual item on
>the left or the right of the prescription paper, as an NHS or private
>prescription. This could save several seconds in a consultation.
>
>However, rather than obliging individuals to buy prepayment
>certificates, a task beyond some of the neediest individuals, why not
>explicitly cap the cost. Then, provided they attend the same
>pharmacy, or carry and present a card or log of some sort to record
>payment of prescription charges, once an individual had paid the
>maximum for that month, quarter, year or lifetime they would not be
>troubled by demands for certificates or fees.
>
>Recording and Inferring Exempt Status
>----------------------------------------------
>Working from a table listing the Read codes for the bizarre accumulated
>list of excluding conditions one could set the machine to automatically
>set the exempt status for many patients.
>In addition the best use of the exempt flag would be to validate an
>assertion that the medical condition conferred exemption, against that
>table, thus improving the completeness of the medical record.
>
>SIlly system though.
>
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