The charge for prescriptions in England will remain at £9.90 for May 2025, as government considerations about a price increase have not yet concluded, Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has said.

The cost of prescription Pre-Payment Certificates (PPCs), including HRT PPCs, will also remain unchanged for May.

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The pharmacy negotiator said that it would 'update community pharmacy teams as soon as any changes are announced by ministers, including details of when they will be implemented'.

And it said that pharmacies could continue displaying the same notice of charges as they had previously.

Last month, CPE told contractors that prescription charges from the last financial year would roll over for prescriptions dispensed in April 2025.

But patients who previously received tax credits are no longer automatically eligible for free prescriptions, as the tax credit scheme ended on 5 April.

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Recent analysis from the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) suggested that 2.7 million patients could have saved on their prescription charges by using a PPC.

But it noted that this may be difficult for patients to plan in advance without knowing how long treatment may take.

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And Tase Oputu, chair of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) England Pharmacy Board, told The Pharmacist that while PPCs were useful to reduce the cost of medicines, they were 'not a long-term solution to the fundamental issue that no one should have to pay for essential medicines'.

And she said prescription charges should be removed in England as they are in other parts of the UK.