The government has published a consultation on aligning the upper age exemption for NHS prescription charges with the State Pension age.

The eight-week consultation will look at options for implementing a change in the age at which people in England become eligible for free prescriptions from the current age of 60, to 66 years of age.

One option includes introducing a grace period meaning people aged 60 to 65 at the point of any change can continue to receive free prescriptions.

The consultation does not propose any other changes to existing exemptions from charges, which remain in place for a range of ages and vulnerable groups or those on low incomes.

Health Minister James Bethell said: “We are committed to improving patient care and supporting the NHS with the funding it needs to recover from this pandemic. The upper age exemption for free prescriptions used to align with the State Pension age, but that link has been lost over the years.

“Prescription charges are an important source of income for the NHS, and the costs of providing free prescriptions continue to increase with our aging population. I encourage anyone with views on our proposals to share them through the consultation response form, available online on GOV.UK.”

Prescription charges make an important contribution to the NHS budget. Between 2015 to 2016 and 2019 to 2020, prescription charges generated over £2.8 billion for the NHS, which has gone towards essential running costs for frontline services. It is estimated this change could bring in up to £300 million more for the NHS by 2026 to 2027.