NHS Co-payments

Hi i am sorry i have had no dealings with this.

Why don't you phone the Macmillan, phone number is on this site.

They have nurses,  advisers, on money situation, they have a great lot of help, worth a call.

I hope some one can come along that has had dealings with Co ~_payments. 

Hi SC2010 if you go on  the NHS England webpage it will tell you how to access the payment scheme. the price of paclitaxel is around £500 a week an ramarumicab £300 for the drug only. my only experience with the payment scheme is over 10 years ago so of little relevance today especially as they are changing it on April 1st. PS Macmillan have imformation as well, good luck and take care.

Eddie

Hi SC2010, Sorry I am late replying but I just wanted to comment on your post. I am in Scotland so I don't have knowledge of the co-payment scheme. However I wanted to say that when I failed the screening for a Combo trial, my oncologist said one of the combo drugs could help. I was in palliative care Stage4 Malignant Melanoma and there was nothing they could give me because neither RT nor Chemo works for MM. my Oncologist wrote to various companies who produced the drug asking if they could supply it "under special circumstances" and fortunately she got a positive response from GlaxoSmithKline. NHS couldn't supply it as it hadn't been licensed in this country yet.

I am unsure how things work in England but could it possibly be worthwhile having a word with your Oncologist Failing that I would contact the Helpline on this page! Good luck. Please let us know how you get on!

thank you everyone for your advice i will follow it up x

I have not heard the term co-funding used in the UK setting but am wondering if what you are referring to here is self-funding, which is the term used for when you are an NHS patient undergoing treatment and when you simultaneously self-fund an additional treatment which is not available to you on the NHS. There are a number of issues that need to be considered. First, my impression is that there does not appear to be a standard cost for treatments across England - it will depend on your NHS Trust. Avastin, for example, can cost anything from a several hundred to £2K+ per treatment - that's just for the drug. Then there is the consultant's fee (usually @ £450). Normally, blood tests and scans would be covered by the NHS. My understanding is that the self-funded treatment cannot be given in the NHS setting - so you would either have it in the hospital's private wing (if it has one), or at home, or at some other location such as a private hospital. If this is all applicable to you, then I recommend that you find out who would provide the drug where you are based and get a quote for the cost per treatment.