Does anyone else find this absolutely disgusting?  There is now a notice at my usual vet's stating that soon there will be a £7.50 charge for all prescriptions, due to a change in legislations.  It's bad enough that we have to pay for the drugs as well - and now, the £8 I would have saved by buying Soli's propalin from a particular online site will be almost totally cancelled out.  As if the credit crunch isn't proving hard enough :-(

I thought that is was all in with there charges, mine charge £19.50 for a consult, and now with another charge for the prescription and then the meds they are going to make it very hard for people on a very tight income.
its the animals that will suffer.

> I thought that is was all in with there charges, mine charge £19.50 for a consult,

I no its a bit off subject £19.50 for a consult omg our vet charge £38. something!!!

Once we have to pay for a prescription I think most people will be asking for that prescription to be for a full 6 months or as you say it will be very difficult for those who find themselves on a tighter budget.

Think I will be buying medication for acute conditions from my vet still but chronic stuff will have to come via the net or I will not be able to afford the medication my dogs need.

Isn't it discretionary though,vets can charge if they want to since October but can chose if they want to or not?

> Isn't it discretionary though,vets can charge if they want to since October but can chose if they want to or not?

I'm not sure - this notice was the first I knew about it.  If it is, and they are still going to charge for prescriptions, I will be transferring fully to my other vet (who neutered my rats at a cheaper rate with more experienced surgeons than this place), assuming they won't charge of course.

I think you will find the charge applies for when you want a prescription to buy the meds elsewhere, but not when they dispense/sell them to you.

> I no its a bit off subject £19.50 for a consult omg our vet charge £38. something!!!

Mine too!

Mine is £24 plus Vat of course.

Mine is about the same as Brainless.
Though sometimes when they are in a nice mood and its a follow-up they haven't charged me a bean. This being for my cat.. But they have stung me in other ways.

Yes, don't think any will charge for it if you buy the drugs from them which if it is a one off most of us do, it is the repeats and lifelong medication that we buy from the internet that they will charge for the perscription which if it is for 6 months is ok, if it is for one month it really is not.

mine is 25.00 but i do get 10% off the other two and the 2nd consult for the same illness.

I think you will find the charge applies for when you want a prescription to buy the meds elsewhere, but not when they dispense/sell them to you

We charge for both, a dispensing fee is charged when we put up the meds for owners and a prescription charge is charged for writing a written prescription for people wanting to buy the meds from another vet or on-line. Both charges are the same price, about £6 at my work. Remember the vet has to check the animal's history before medication is dispensed and the nurse has to put up them up, our time does need to be charged for :)

Generally we will only dispense one month's worth of medication, unless the owner requests more, eg because they are going away on holiday. So it is only fair that clients requesting a written prescription are offered the same, a month's worth.

> We charge for both, a dispensing fee is charged when we put up the meds for owners and a prescription charge is charged for writing a written prescription for people wanting to buy the meds from another vet or on-line

Do you mean that this charge is applied even when the patient is being seen during the course of treatments or is that just for repeat prescriptions.

It sounds like ours, we charge around £6.50 for repeat prescriptions, regardless of whether or not they have a written prescription or drugs dispensed. If they have meds in consult this charge doesn't apply. We will only give prescriptions or dispense up to 2 months worth at a time.
What you don't realise is that we charge less mark up on the drugs so if you are having lots of drugs it works out cheaper than if the dispensing fee was included in the drugs mark up, although it is slightly more expensive if you are only getting one drug. However it will also benefit you if you are getting drugs in consult as the mark up will be cheaper, so just because one practice doesn't charge a fee i would just check on the price of their drugs before changing practices! The fee could be hidden elsewhere.

Lookingt at the other posts ours seem quite good.........£22.98 for a standard consult. haven't been in since the prescription charge came in but I had 6month repeat prescription to get stuff off vetmedic for heart stuff for last GSD a year ago with no problem and daughters Rott was on Soloxine for over 2 years and went up 6monthly for check but otherwise just used to ring 'can Wichita have more tablets please' and next day they were ready to collect with no dispensing charge at all.
Chris

From 1st Nov my vet will be charging £12 for a prescription if you wish to buy drugs elsewhere (ie. internet etc)

This makes me so angry, vets had the nerve to lobby the government to get this ruling changed after the Competitions commission said they were out of order as they have the monopoly on prescriptions!

> the monopoly on prescriptions!

They have lost their monopoly on dispensing. I'm not sure who else they could share prescribing with :-)

The whole point from what I can gather as to why the commission refused to grant them leave to charge for prescriptions was based on the fact that up until that time they had the monopoly on both prescriptions AND dispensing, now the government have caved to their lobbying ineffect they've reinstated that very monopoly.  What choice is there when you get vets only giving animals a short acting antibiotic/pain relief against the old one that covered 24hrs then you gave them their tablets, meaning you have no choice other than to have them dispense the antibiotics needed before you've got a chance to order online or via a chemist?

I know of at least 1 vet in Wolverhampton who did exactly that then wrote a prescription out for the owner to order the drugs, great you think, wrong by the time  she was at home the RSPCA were at her door waiting for her as the Vet had reported her for neglect as her animal would be without drugs for a min 24 hrs whilst waiting for the prescription to be filled by another company.  Poor woman had no clue the vet had not given her animal the normal doseage that allowed her time to fill said prescription, she reported the vet but has heard nothing since to my knowledge.

Sorry to my mind that's cruel not only is the animal suffering intentionally because of the Vets actions but also the owner (disabled woman) who is left with a mixture of fear due to RSPCA on her door step and guilt about her animal potentially suffering whilst she trusted the vet.

>Sorry to my mind that's cruel

And rather unusual I am sure.

The majority of us have been paying part or all of that prescription fee (to cover those who took prescriptions away) in the consultation charge for a good many years now. You do not think the vets would have been out of pocket do you :) Everyone whom attended a vets has already been covering any prescriptions that they may have had to write without even knowing it. The point now is - will they reduce the consultation fee to remove that amount from everyone, thus only charging those whom wish to take-a-way a prescription? I would very much doubt it.

We did have the option to lobby our MPs etc about the coming change - but you can only do that when you are made aware that it is in the pipe-line. I don't recall seeing any sign to that effect in my vets or anywhere else come to that. Was it widely reported in the dog press?

>Was it widely reported in the dog press?

I read about it in Your Dog, but nothing official at work. Mind you, we haven't yet taken down the notice that says that there might be a prescription charge from when vets could charge before! I don't think either of the prescriptions written in the past two years has made any significant difference to income - certainly no other fees rose as a result of prescriptions being free, so I can't see why they'd come down now.

Jeangenie, just out of interest would it be possible for you to actually provide a breakdown of how your vet arrives at the consultation fee that he does? I have always wondered how one vet can charge a £15 consultation fee and another £30 for what should be an identical service. I understand that suburban vets (supposedly) have more overheads etc than maybe a country vet, but I think we would all be interested to see how the vets arrive at the amount they charge.

VETS ARE there to make money, lets not forget that bit,
yes they have to pay for the building and equipment,
at my vet's they have lots of staff just sitting behind the desk answering the phone, or booking you in, at 1 time there is always 4 there, then there is the ones who are in with the vet, they all need to be paid and who is paying WE ARE.
There bread n butter is basic inoculations.
well over priced.
What has happen to the one's who care, its the same the world over Money talks.
Caring come a sad second

>Jeangenie, just out of interest would it be possible for you to actually provide a breakdown of how your vet arrives at the consultation fee that he does?

I'll have a go, but I'm sure it's extremely complicated. We have two premises to pay for, three fulltime vets, one receptionist (a shared job) at each, a practice manager and several vet nurses (qualified and trainees - not all vets are teaching practices) to pay wages to. Although the service between different vets should be identical, the costs will vary tremendously. Suburban vets, for example, might have higher business rates to pay (especially in central London) but equally the higher population density means a larger potential client base. Rural vets might have lower business rates (though that's by no means guaranteed) but might also have a lot more travelling to outlying farms, and that time and fuel would have to be paid for. It's very much swings and roundabouts.

>Sorry to my mind that's cruel

And rather unusual I am sure.

Agreed but to be honest just 1 vet doing it is bad enough, just 1 owner mistreating their animal is bad in a simalar way.  I have been contacted by various folk who ask if a vet can turn them away - to my knowledge yes they can, seems its not so unusual to take an animal for emergency treatment only to have the vet ask for proof of 'ability to pay' with some being turned away when they realised they'd come out with just their car keys and injured animal!  Shocking to me at least take the animal start treatment and hold it until payment is made surely that would be a more humane way of dealing with a potentially bad situation surely the animals needs are more important.

I had 1 of my cats come home monday night after being missing since thrusday, I was away so it wasn't unusual for him to do this so my friend looking after the animals wasn't worried.  When I saw his oozing wounds I rang the vets and left with the cat for a 40 mile round trip - joined this practise when assured my local surgery had 24/7 vet coverage - still awaiting an explanation on that.  He was there before 10 pm and had 2 jabs to see him thru the night followed by surgery the next day, he now has open wounds to allow the infection to drain, my bill was £112.72 with £53.72 of it for the previous nights visit  Not too bad you think until I asked for a break down of the bill, imagine my horror to see the drugs given the night before were £4.70 inc vat with the rest being consultation fee a whooping £49.02!

"There bread n butter is basic inoculations.
well over priced.
What has happen to the one's who care, its the same the world over Money talks.
Caring come a sad second
I'm sorry but why shouldn't they? They have trained for years to become vets, they still need to live like you and i why shouldn't they make a profit? Doctors don't do it for the love of the patients they get paid very handsomely for it! Difference is there is no NHS to pay the vets wages. How do you know the vaccinations are overpriced, have you ever bought a box of vaccines? (Given as 50 vials can be well over £100 i 'm sure you havent), the vaaccination cost aslo incorporates the consultation fee for your animal to be check over, whic halso includes the staff wages, building cost, phones so that you can contact them day and night, equipment upkeep so that they can care for your animals etc. Actually when you look at it like that the vaccinations are very cheap! Have you ever had to pay for a human vaccination? I believe its a lot more than a dog or cat one, and thats without the health check!
I get so annoyed when people keep accusing vets of not caring for animals when i can assure every vet i have personally met does, just becuase they dare to try and make a living like the rest of us.

> how one vet can charge a £15 consultation fee and another £30 for what should be an identical service

There is also the issue of living costs - in some areas of the country rent, housing etc are more expensive than in other areas - I would be interested to know if the situation is similar for costs of solicitors and plumbers, say, too - whether it varies by region.

> imagine my horror to see the drugs given the night before were £4.70 inc vat with the rest being consultation fee a whooping £49.02!

That sounds very reasonable for an out of hours charge - round here at that time of night you're looking at about £90-100 for a consultation. And what would you expect to pay another professional - dentist, doctor, solicitor - at that time of night? We are lucky with the NHS in tha we forget how much the time of a professional costs.

Our lot charge FROM £78 for out of hours, goes up after midnight, B Hols etc.
Chris

Just out of interest how much would it cost to call out a plumber or locksmith out of hours, a lot more than £50 i would guess!

I'm not sure if private doctors do out of hours emergencies but if they did I suspect the cost would finish off their patients!

It is now being reported in the press..

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/news/article-1082373/Pet-owners-hit-return-15-charge-prescriptions.html

You have a CHOICE re which dr you use ie NHS or private vet medicine does not afford you that same choice which was the whole issue with the commission originally. 

 

> You have a CHOICE re which dr you use ie NHS or private vet medicine

That is the point I made earlier, there is no prospect of removing the monopoly because nobody else can prescribe but is it fair to ask vets to work for free?  NHS doctors do not work for free they are paid just not at the point of delivery.

Sorry but they're not working for free when they write a prescription they've already been paid a consultation fee which includes the prescription, otherwise it would be listed as an extra item to the consultation fee when one gets a full breakdown of their bills.

> they've already been paid a consultation fee

If you read the link given today it gives an explanation of what you are paying for.

Does anyone think then that this might make vet prescribed medication charges actually come down in the vet surgeries themselves?
So hypothetically say I went to my vet, I'm charged the xx amount consultation fee, then xx amount for a prescription, then I either decide to fill the prescription at my vet surgery, or take the prescription away with me to be filled by ordering the prescribed medication online.
Now if the medication is still cheaper online, of course it still could be beneficial / cheaper to order online.
But then if you start adding on postal charges, possibly vat, is it actually still going to be cheaper?

As I say, dependant on the price difference...

Is there a huge difference in vet prescribed medication and online (but still prescribed) medication? 

Do GP's charge us for writing out prescriptions? 
You only pay a prescription charge if you have it filled by the pharmacy don't you?

Are people on benefits going to be charged the same amount?
Can you claim this prescription charge back if it is part of a treatment that is covered by your pet insurance?
Lots of questions!  Sorry!

> You have a CHOICE re which dr you use ie NHS or private vet medicine does not afford you that same choice which was the whole issue with the commission originally.

you still have to pay for a prescritption even in the NHS.

I don't see a problem with the vets charging a prescription fee, they must loose a lot of money by people getting meds from online shops etc, the prescription charge is a way of them getting some of that money back. Online shops can sell the drugs much cheaper as they don't have the nurses, vets & specialists wages to pay for or all of the equipment the vets need (xray machines etc...).

We have a choice weather to get a pet in the first place, we are not forced to have a pet and we all know the costs involved with caring for our pets.
I've heard a few people complaining about the cost of the vets I use, they are dearer than a couple of other local alternatives but the service they offer is fantastic, every single time I see them I am very impressed with thier compassion for the animals they are treating and thier friendly, helpfull manner. They offer a free drop-in clinic with a nurse for any minor complaints including help with pets weightloss, they run free puppy parties attended by a vet & behaviourist, they run an animal ambulance for emergency transport of pets to the clinic (which we were not charged for when our dog was run-over). They have 24 hour vet cover (thier own vets work this on rotation) along with 24hour nurse care in thier hospitol. The vets are happy to chat to you over the 'phone to see if you need to bring the pet in to be seen (that has saved me a couple of consultation charges and put my mind at rest of minor worries). I do not begrudge having to pay a prescrition charge if they introduce one, it would be a small price to pay for the wonderfull service they give as I know my pets health is safe in the hands of our vets.
I love the vets we use :)

> Do GP's charge us for writing out prescriptions? 
> You only pay a prescription charge if you have it filled by the pharmacy don't you?

The Dr's don't charge for writing the prescription, but you have to pay to get the drugs that are prescribed on it.

> Does anyone think then that this might make vet prescribed medication charges actually come down in the vet surgeries themselves?

Possibly.  They are being advised not to overcharge for the prescription so the dispensing chemists could still represent competition.  Before the rules were changed 3 years or so ago medicines dispensed made up about 20% of a vets income.  When the charges were suspended they clearly had to make up a shortfall to remain viable and I suspect that has contributed to much of the increase in veterinary fees that people have occasionally noted on here.  Now some of the income will be returning I suppose it will be anyones guess whether medicine prices will be charged at a lower rate, other services will be charged at a lower rate or neither of these :-)

> Is there a huge difference in vet prescribed medication and online (but still prescribed) medication? 

I don't find it so with my vets and the medication I am using for my dog, certainly not enough to go without the convenience of calling into my vets to pick it up but I suspect every case will be different.

> Do GP's charge us for writing out prescriptions?

Yes, either the NHS pays them or you pay privately and their fees are likely to be much higher that the £12-£15 likely to be charged by a vet.

>You only pay a prescription charge if you have it filled by the pharmacy don't you?

This seems to vary.  My vet does not charge.

>Are people on benefits going to be charged the same amount?

At a private vets I am sure they will.  Don't know what any of the charities do.

>Can you claim this prescription charge back if it is part of a treatment that is covered by your pet insurance?

I think you would have to check that with the insurance company.  I am sure there would be a good arguement for including it if you can demonstrate it worked out cheaper with the cost of the medication but then, if you are insured, why would you bother.

> you still have to pay for a prescritption even in the NHS

No, you don't pay for the script, well not directly, you pay for the dispensing.

... and people without a job, and those claiming housing benefit do not have to pay.  But then, vets are comparable with private medicine, who charge for everything!

Absolutely. But then you could argue that they cannot help being ill themselves, but if they choose to have a pet- -which is basically a luxury according to the government which is why you pay vat on vet bills, then its their descision. Nobody makes them have a pet, and if they choose to have one they know what the cost of pet ownership will be, (which is why insurance is a god send). It still comes down to choice.

> You have a CHOICE re which dr you use ie NHS or private vet medicine does not afford you that same choice which was the whole issue with the commission originally. 

Since that was in reply to me... we pay for the NHS through our taxes - NHS doctors still get paid, it's just that it isn't direct so people don't have to think about how much doctors services actually cost - maybe it would be better if they did.

Are you suggesting we should pay through our taxes for treatment for pets that people have made a lifestyle choice to have?! Then people with different hobbies would say... well taxes should fund my handbags... or whatever. The argument falls down completely. I see no reason why a professional should have to work for less than another professional because you may need to use their service owing to the hobby you have decided to have. Pets count as a luxury - there is VAT on pet food, vet services etc.

You do have a choice - use one vet or use a different vet. As you have for any other service - plumbers, solicitors....

I do think it's having the NHS in this country that makes people feel so indignant about professional fees for animal care. The NHS takes billions of pounds to run....

> Don't know what any of the charities do.
>

The PDSA provide treatment for pets of people on specific benefits - and that is free treatment and drugs, and the owners are meant to make a donation of what they can afford. So I suspect since the drugs are 'free' in a sense anyway, that they probably just don't do prescriptions. But the latter is a guess. :-)

Are you suggesting we should pay through our taxes for treatment for pets that people have made a lifestyle choice to have?! Then people with different hobbies would say... well taxes should fund my handbags... or whatever. The argument falls down completely. I see no reason why a professional should have to work for less than another professional because you may need to use their service owing to the hobby you have decided to have. Pets count as a luxury - there is VAT on pet food, vet services etc.

Fail to see where that came from when we're talking about greedy Vets fees. 

Am disgusted mind that folk believe those of us who are disabled should NOT have a pet, which is the alternative!

I'm sorry not all of us use the PDSA I'm firmly of the belief that you have what you can pay for non of this Credit rubbish coz you want something ergo I only have what I can afford be it my animals or house, food, clothing etc I have nothing on credit no mortgage, no loans, no debts to anyone.  The only debt I've had in my lifetime has been my mortgage which I paid off after 10 yrs purely by adjusting my lifestyle to suit as the old saying goes you cut your cloth accordingly  so I don't have a problem paying a FAIR price for a service I receive but as the itemised bills I've recieved do  not list prescription charge as an extra in my book I've paid already so flat refuse to pay again. second time.

I'm not quite sure i follow what you are saying, in my vets the prescription fee is just  for repeat prescriptions, if drugs or a prescription are given in consultation then this is included in the consultation fee but is not an extra. Therefore its going to be differnt when you ask for a repeat prescription because you are not paying a consultation fee that time.

>Fail to see where that came from when we're talking about greedy Vets fees.

Vets are a business, just as private practice doctors are. If you feel your vet charges are too high, you're perfectly at liberty to change. I don't know where your bit about disabled people shouldn't have a pet came from - lots of disabled people have good wages. If they have an official assistance dog, then that dog is still the property of the charity and therefore the charity pays the vet bills. Pets are a lifestyle choice that should be funded by the owner; I quite agree with your belief that 'you have what you can pay for'.