Chris

The prescription charge nominally reflects what the NHS pays to the pharmacist to fulfil an NHS prescription. It isn’t a contribution to the cost of the drug. High street pharmacists are employees or partners in private businesses. Where there are no prescription charges it is because government policy is not to pass that cost onto the patient (pensioners, everyone in Wales and Scotland, those on low incomes, those needing contraceptives). You don’t pay them as a hospital in-patient either, because that would suddenly make some treatment definitely not free at point of use and potentially very expensive for people who don’t otherwise have an exemption.