NHS targets prescription cheats to save £ 300m

A CLAMPDOWN on cheats who dishonestly claim free prescriptions will be part of a new drive to save the NHS in England £300 million a year.

Rogue pharmacists and dentists who cheat the health service will also be targeted by the NHS’s counter-fraud team.

The new approach, announced by Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock, will start with a pledge to halve prescription fraud, which costs the NHS £256 million annually.

Mr Hancock said: ‘The NHS is no longer an easy target and if you try to steal from it, you will face the consequences.’

Digital records will allow pharmacies to check whether a patient is exempt from paying a prescription charge before their medication is dispensed.

The scheme will be piloted next year before being rolled out across the whole NHS.

Other measures will include a new drive to catch pharmacists and dentists who claim payments for services they have not carried out.

As part of the crackdown, the NHS Counter Fraud Authority will partner with fraud prevention service Cifas.

Mr Hancock said: ‘Those who abuse the NHS and choose to line their own pockets with money that should be spent on patients and frontline care will no longer have anywhere to hide. The new technology and analysis, combined with the intelligence and experience of counter-fraud specialists, will form the starting point of this fight against NHS fraudsters.’

Health Minister Stephen Barclay, a trained lawyer who worked in roles targeting financial crime before entering politics, will lead the initiative.