You may have seen some of the recent media coverage calling for prescription charges to be scrapped in England for people with long term conditions.
We are really proud to be a part of the Prescription Charges Coalition which has driven this call. Working together with more than 20 other health charities we have a louder, stronger voice for campaigning to the Government.
In September 2008, Gordon Brown promised to give people with long-term conditions free prescriptions. It still hasn't happened and we've been campaigning with the Prescription Charges Coalition ever since to get him to keep his promise.
We want free prescriptions for people with long-term conditions. At the moment, younger people with Parkinson's can face years paying for expensive medicines. We think it's unfair and it needs to change. 
This week the Prescription Charges Coalition organised a group of people to gather outside parliament, and used Twitter and Facebook networks to get people to phone Gordon Brown and ask him to keep his promise. We flooded the switchboard and even more publicity came out of the action.
The next step is to write to Gordon Brown to demand a response following our phone calls, and continue the campaign for a better deal for people with Parkinson’s. If you would like to get involved in our campaigns sign up to the National Campaigns Network
Steve Ford is the Chief Executive at the Parkinson's Disease Society
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2 comments:
Hi Thank you and keep up the good work! We appreciate all the people the society helps. People are surprised we have to pay, maybe because it is assumed young people don't have Parkinson
Maybe that is part of the problem
My father had early onset Parkinsons, diagnosed in the 1970's. For 25 years until his death at the age of 70 he had to pay for drugs that were increasingly unable to treat his symptoms, even as the dose escalated. I am really supportive of this campaign. As someone who has been through treatment for cancer, I am entitled to free prescriptions which I consider is a right that should be extended to those with Parkinsons.The Society is to be commended for its stance and greater awareness of this issue is vital.
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