DISAPPOINTMENT has been expressed at plans to stop GPs in Enfield handing out free medicine.

Monty Meth, president of the Over 50s forum, based at Millfield House, Silver Street, is concerned about the Enfield Clinical Commissioning Group’s idea to save money.

He says GPs in 49 surgeries across the borough are being told by the CCG to stop issuing free prescriptions for medicines that can be bought in pharmacies and supermarkets.

Some of these medicines may include paracetamol, hay fever remedies costing between £6 and £10 and also eye drops and ointments costing between £2 and £8.

Cough and cold treatments will also be affected, along with remedies for indigestion, such as Gaviscon.

The forum believes the CCG is attempting to increase efficiency savings from £9.9 million to £17.1 million in this financial year, but it will affect patients who cannot afford to pay for medicine.

Mr Meth said it was “unacceptable” people were not warned about the new plans.

He said: “The most disappointing thing is that the CCG says it will involve patients and the public in everything they do but when it comes to decisions that have an effect on ordinary people, they do not ask us.

“This is not the way things should be done, as once again it is the poorest and most vulnerable people in the borough who will be the hardest hit.”

Mr Meth believes thousands of people in the borough rely on free medicine due to being on low or non-existent incomes and they “have a right” to be involved in healthcare decisions.

He said: “Enfield residents are now rated as living in the 12th most deprived of London’s 32 Boroughs and this attempt by the Enfield NHS Clinical Commissioning Group to reduce its medicines bill will mainly hurt people on income support, the unemployed on job seeker’s allowance, the hundreds if not thousands of elderly local people receiving pension credit and families with children under 16.

“We have said that patients have a right to be involved in the implications of this recovery plan which we can now see is firstly to cut the CCG’s £38 million a year medicines bill – 10 per cent of their £380million annual budget - and hit the poorest in our community first.”

A spokesperson for Enfield CCG, who was not named, said GPs were being recommended to not prescribe medicine which could be purchased over the counter too.

They said: "NHS Enfield Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) in line with most CCGs advises GPs that they should not routinely prescribe for minor ailments where a suitable over the counter product is available.

"The CCG currently spends more than £1million a year on medicines that are readily available to buy from local pharmacies, shops or supermarkets and which are often only required short term for minor ailments."

The CCG also admitted due to increasing medicine prices, prescriptions will only be issued for long term health problems.  

They said: "The CCG Governing Body has reviewed prescribing in Enfield and have agreed a list of medicines which can easily be purchased cheaply over the counter.

"These medicines are usually prescribed for minor or short term health problems only and where this is not the case they may continue to be prescribed.

"Faced with ever increasing levels of demand and rapidly rising medicines costs, it is vital that we use the NHS resources as effectively as possible in order to provide the best quality of care for all Enfield patients."