Currently, pregnant women and those who have recently given birth are exempt from paying for prescriptions, with a maternity exemption certificate. However, too few women are told they need a certificate, and the process of applying for one is unclear, and inaccessible for many, leading to fines and warning letters. To many pregnant and postnatal women in the UK a letter like this, and a possible fine of hundreds of pounds, could be devastating. The postpartum period is a vulnerable one, where a women’s mental and physical health is taking a battering, and money is tight - there’s a reason we are entitled to the free prescriptions in the first place! For a women with PPD, in a household where money is a struggle, this letter could cause a breaking point. Over 38,000 of these fine letters were sent last year - how many vulnerable women with PPA did this panic? How many households had to go without because the mum had to pay a fine? How many women were beaten for making this mistake? How many women got the letter and couldn’t read it, meaning their fines just got bigger and bigger? 

We need to put an end to this unnecessary fining and ensure support for women to apply for their certificates. Pregnant women and new mothers should not be fined if they have unknowingly claimed a prescription using maternity exemption without a valid certificate. Instead, support to apply for the certificate needs to be given as part of antenatal care, and all pregnant and postnatal women need to be informed about the need to apply. Reminder letters could be sent to support this, but no one should receive a fine or warning letter.

You can find more information about what is happening in this article from The Guardian, written by Anna Tims:

NHS fines mothers for claiming free prescriptions while pregnant | NHS | The Guardian