��������

Yep, last time we renewed our son's asthma medication we had to pay a token amount, it was a couple of months ago and we did question the amount to pay with the pharmacist having never been asked to pay anything before, forget his exact reply, but yes it was in effect a new tax. It was not much compared to the 'real' cost of the inhalers so cannot complain.

This is news to me - I'm not doubting your word, but I can't find anything to confirm it as a national measure, maybe something connected with giving regions autonomy over health budgeting? But the whole notion of a "reasonable token charge" at the point of health care/medicine delivery seems good to me. For example, your medico di famiglia recommends (say) a heart ecograph - or you say to your medico you fancy a heart ecograph - for €35 you can have one probably within a fortnight. (If it's urgent, there is another route which cuts the waiting time down, but doesn't put the price up). Now isn't that sensible? I guess a heart ecograph would cost £200 in a private UK clinic (possibly more). To get a vet to ecograph a cat in the UK - well, uness you have pet insurance you wouldn't go there - but in Italy it is max a €60 throw. Do you see where I'm going? The American system (in a ghasty way being followed by the UK system) is in thrall to insurance of every type - most socially disastrously in health insurance - and all this does is to feed shareholders of drug companies and overpaid (in their turn, overinsured against malpractice suits) "medical specialists". Rant over - but the cretinous fixation about 'free at the point of delivery' is barking mad and so demonstrably counterproductive that only Brits would put up with it! To beef about €0,21 and call it a hidden tax.....perlease. 

Fillide. I was not complaining about the tax (never said it was hidden), and neither was Andiamo or so I read. I think anyone would just ask, just out of interest as these things just come out of the blue sometimes here. Having been in hospital and hearing from consultants how funds are low, then it is a good idea, if it goes back into the health system.

The founders of the NHS made it a basis of the system that it was free at the point of delivery.  A sort of consitution, so more of a principle than a fixation.  The same that here in Italy there is a 'right to a job'  a 'right to a home' and all the things that teh Brits left behind many years ago.   As far as being in thrall to medical companies, its worth remembering that in the UK there are over 50.000 drugs that can be  prescribed, here the medical companies have 'incentives' and there are less than 6000 - so its much more of a closed shop that benefits 2 drug companies directly, one of which has its owner in prison at the moment...... 

Charging a small amount for prescriptions is currently being discussed by other EU countries having free medication for pensioners, the unemployed and the chronically ill. The idea is to charge a small amount per medication up to a maximum per annum so that those having to take a large number of medications will not end up paying too much. Possibly, it is a way to raise some funds at times of severe depletion and to discourage people from asking all the time for prescribed drugs which they do not need.... Australia has been using this system for many years and others may be checking at their results.