Why the 'A Chronic Cost' campaign matters to me, and should matter to you too
The 'A Chronic Cost'* campaign calls for ending prescription charges for IBD patients in England
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) affects nearly 500,000 people in the UK. The 'A Chronic Cost' campaign advocates for free prescriptions in England to ease financial strain on patients, improve lifelong condition management, and reduce pressure on the NHS.
*'A Chronic Cost' has been initiated and is fully funded by Tillotts Pharma UK and Ireland. A launch event for the campaign is being held in the Attlee Room in Parliament from 15:30-17:00 on Tuesday 28th October 2025 – if you are interested in attending or finding out more, please contact the campaign team at: [email protected]
Often diagnosed at working age,i IBD is a term used to describe two main conditions: Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease. Almost half a million people live with IBD in the UK,ii and that number is growing, with 25,000 being diagnosed each year.iii
IBD affects everyone differently. Symptoms such as diarrhoea, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, and anaemia vary from person to person. But one thing is certain: there’s no cure, and everyone diagnosed must manage it for life, often from an early working age.
I was lucky. I was diagnosed with IBD in my late fifties, but I had watched my lovely kid next door struggle with her IBD from the age of 8. We both learned the hard way how to tackle life with a chronic illness. My condition is pretty well controlled, though I am on life-long medication, but the flare-ups are random and stop me dead in my tracks. Hot countries are my nemesis, which is not good for someone whose job involves the conservation of tropical jungles! For many in England, coping with a debilitating condition is further exacerbated by having to pay for medications on which they depend and which they will have to fund for the whole of their life. This is becoming even more challenging during a cost-of-living crisis.
That’s why I am supporting the 'A Chronic Cost' campaign and urge you to support, too.
For many people living with long-term conditions, prescription charges aren’t just another bill; they’re a real barrier to staying well. When you're managing a condition like IBD, the need for multiple medications every fortnight or month can quickly become overwhelming, especially when the cost of everything is rising and personal budgets are tight.
A 2023 survey by the Prescription Charges Coalition, which included 4,000 individuals with long-term conditions, found that nearly 1 in 10 had skipped medication in the past year because of the cost.iv Unsurprisingly, over half (53 per cent) also said they’d had to take time off work due to their health deteriorating.v For employers, this translates into lost productivity, with Demos estimating a £600m annual cost to UK businesses.vi Further pressure is felt in the system due to hospital admissions, which have risen by 26.82 per cent since 2019.vii For people with IBD, a hospital admission becomes more likely if they have to economise on medication. It’s a stark reminder that chronic illness impacts not just individuals but the wider economy and healthcare system.
I was lucky. I was diagnosed only a few years before I became eligible for free prescriptions. Since most IBD patients are diagnosed well before the age of 60, when they get free prescriptions, they typically face the burden of paying for essential medications throughout most, if not the whole of, their working life.
England remains the only UK nation that still imposes charges for NHS prescriptions, and the charge is now £9.90 per item.viii While England has a list of medical conditions and criteria that qualify for medical exemption, IBD is not included on this list. Little has changed since 1968,ix when IBD prevalence was significantly lower in the UK.x
The case for change isn’t just about fairness; it’s about making the health system work better for everyone. A 2018 economic model by the York Health Economics Consortium estimated that scrapping prescription charges for IBD patients could save the NHS around £20m each year.xi These savings come from some simple things many of us take for granted: helping people manage their symptoms at home, avoiding painful relapses, reducing the risk of bowel cancer, and cutting down on GP visits.
When patients are supported, the whole system benefits.
What the 'A Chronic Cost' campaign is asking for:
The 'A Chronic Cost' campaign is calling for the abolition of prescription charges for patients living with IBD in England.
We recognise the challenge of achieving this goal, particularly given that the government positioned the freezing of prescription charges at £9.90 earlier this year as a success.xii
As interim measures, the campaign urges the government to:
- review the medical exemption list for prescription charges
- assess the cost-effectiveness of scrapping charges for IBD patients
This campaign is for everyone, whether you live with IBD, know someone who does, or simply believe in fairness. I’d love for you to get involved. You can reach out any time at [email protected] to learn more.
About Tillotts
Tillotts is a specialty pharmaceutical company with over 30 years’ expertise in gastrointestinal (GI) health. They develop and supply medicines for conditions typically underserved by bigger pharmaceutical companies, including IBD and C.difficile infection.
NU-02721 | September 2025
i. NHS England. 2024. Hannah’s story: Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/hannahs-story-inflammatory-bowel-disease/#:~:text=IBD%20can%20develop%20at%20any,this%2C%20public%20awareness%20is%20low [Accessed September 2025]
ii. British Society of Gastroenterology. 2024. Landmark Report Calls For Urgent Investment In Bowel Disease Care. Available at: https://www.bsg.org.uk/news/ibd-uk-report-and-press-release [Accessed September 2025]
iii. UCL. 2024. Major cause of inflammatory bowel disease discovered. Available at: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/jun/major-cause-inflammatory-bowel-disease-discovered. [Accessed September 2025]
iv. Prescription Charges Coalition. 2023. Survey reveals prescription charges are a barrier to keeping people well and in work. Available at: https://www.prescriptionchargescoalition.co.uk/latest-news/survey-reveals-prescription-charges-are-a-barrier-to-keeping-people-well-and-in-work [Accessed September 2025]
v. Ibid
vi. Demos. 2021. The Economic Cost of inflammatory Bowel Disease in the UK. Available at: https://demos.co.uk/research/cost-of-ibd/ [Accessed September 2025]
vii. UK Parliament. Written Question, 17 April 2025. https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-04-17/46013 [Accessed September 2025]
viii. NHS. 2025. NHS prescription charges. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/prescriptions/nhs-prescription-charges/ [Accessed September 2025]
ix. GOV.UK. 2025. Aligning the upper age for NHS prescription charge exemptions with the State Pension age. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/aligning-the-upper-age-for-nhs-prescription-charge-exemptions-with-the-state-pension-age/aligning-the-upper-age-for-nhs-prescription-charge-exemptions-with-the-state-pension-age [Accessed September 2025]
x. British Gastroenterology. 2025. P22 Inflammatory bowel disease in the United Kingdom: temporal trends in the incidence over the past 30 years. Available at: https://gut.bmj.com/content/74/Suppl_1/A70.citation-tools [Accessed September 2025]
xi. Prescription Charges Coalition/York Health Economics Consortium. 2018. PRESCRIPTION CHARGES COALITION: Economic evaluation of the benefits of extending free prescriptions to people with long-term conditions. Available at: https://www.prescriptionchargescoalition.org.uk/uploads/1/2/7/5/12754304/economic_evaluation_report.pdf [Accessed September 2025].
xii. GOV.UK. 2025. Cost of living boost for millions as prescription charges frozen. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cost-of-living-boost-for-millions-as-prescription-charges-frozen [Accessed September 2025].
