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CHAPTER SIX: ANALYSIS OF CONSTITUENCY CONSULTATION AND THE SCOTSMAN RESPONSES
In addition to the responses to the written consultation and the focus groups, the Executive received other contributions to the review of prescription charges and exemption arrangements. First, two Members of the Scottish Parliament sent shortened versions of the consultation questionnaire to their constituents, with a view to encouraging engagement with the debate. Second, The Scotsman newspaper launched a campaign to abolish prescription charges for all people suffering from life-threatening and chronic conditions. Both of these contributions are considered in more detail below.
MSP CONSTITUENCY CONSULTATION
Background and method
Two Members of the Scottish Parliament, Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituency) and Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudon) sent shortened versions of the consultation questionnaires to all their respective constituents in order to stimulate engagement with the debate. Both short versions of the questionnaire addressed 5 key issues, although slightly different question wording was used in each case (The 2 versions of the questionnaire are listed in Appendix I). The 5 issues were:
- whether or not medical exemption should extend to all of a patient's prescriptions or only those for the treatment of the exempt condition
- the desired thresholds for exemption on income grounds
- whether it should be possible to pay for Pre Payment Certificates on a monthly basis
- whether students and trainees should be exempt from charges
- Whether exemption for people aged under 16 and over 60 should continue.
In total, the constituency consultations generated 596 responses. For analysis purposes, the data from the two consultations has been combined and quantified.
Responses
Of the 596 respondents to the constituency consultations, a large majority - 465 - felt that medical exemption should apply only to drugs for the treatment of the exempt condition, not to all of the patient's prescriptions.
With regard to the desired threshold for income-based exemption, opinion was more divided: 119 constituents felt that those with an annual income of between £17,500 and £20,000 should have to pay for their prescription. The remainder felt the threshold should be lower, with 107 respondents suggesting £12,500-£15,000, 95 respondents suggesting £10,000-£12,500, 89 respondents suggesting £15,000-£17,500, 48 respondents suggesting £5,000-£7,500 and 42 respondents suggesting £7,500-£10,000. A significant number of respondents (119) provided other suggestions, most of which set an income threshold of over £25,000.
There was near unanimous agreement that patients should be able to pay for prescription pre-payment certificates by monthly instalments - 536 constituents supported this option.
On the issue of exemptions for students and trainees, the two constituency questionnaires posed slightly different questions. The first asked whether students in further or higher education, including those on modern apprenticeships, should be exempt. Of the 313 respondents, 232 were in favour of this option. The second questionnaire asked whether students over the age of 19 in full-time education or on Modern Apprenticeships should be exempt. In this case, 190 out of a total of 283 constituents supported the option.
With regard to age-based exemption, there was overwhelming agreement that prescriptions should remain free for people under 16 and over 60: 585 of the 596 constituents supported this.
THE SCOTSMAN 'CHANGE THE CHARGES' CAMPAIGN
From late April to June, through a series of articles and features, The Scotsman readers were encouraged to submit messages of support for their 'change the charges' campaign, by means of submitting an e-mail or text message, or completing a coupon with the text 'I support the Scotsman's campaign and urge the Scottish Executive to end prescription charges for all those with life-threatening and chronic illnesses'.
The Scotsman formally presented their protest submission on 29th June 2006. It comprised around 2,600 items:
- 657 text messages featuring the caller's name and postcode but no actual messages
- 824 duly completed coupons and only two letters
- 1,115 e-mails (some duplicates), the majority contained short messages of support for the campaign.
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