Campaigns and services
Macmillan's prescription charges campaign is a success
Northern Ireland's Health Minister Michael McGimpsey has announced that prescription charges will be scrapped for everyone from 2010. Charges will be reduced to £3 in January next year and then will be abolished altogether in April 2010.
General Manager of Macmillan in Northern Ireland, Heather Monteverde said:
'Cancer patients in Northern Ireland have been struggling to pay these unfair charges for too long and it is fantastic news that the 55,000 people living with cancer here, along with other people who require medication, will no longer face this added burden.'
Macmillan has led the campaign for free prescriptions in Northern Ireland. We initiated a campaign by one of the major newspapers, the Belfast Telegraph, and have kept the issue high on the political agenda. Our role in achieving free prescriptions was recognised by the Minister, who referred to Macmillan in his speech.
The NI announcement means that Macmillan's campaigning on prescription charges has been successful in all four nations.
A new benefits advice service for people with cancer has been officially opened in Belfast. The new service, a partnership with the Citizens Advice Bureau and Northern Bank, will ensure people affected by cancer have access to advice on benefits and other financial issues. The service is based in the Royal group of hospital. For more information on financial problems visit
www.macmillan.org.uk/getsupport
Over 5000 people have been helped by the new Macmillan Support & Information centre which opened just a year ago in Belfast.
The centre, based at Belfast City Hospital, provides services including counselling, complementary therapies and wig fitting. Booklets, leaflets, videos and other sources of information about cancer are also available.
The centre is open Monday to Friday. Drop in services are available from 9am to 4pm and appointments can be made from 9am to 5pm.
There are two million people living with or beyond cancer in the UK.
Find out how Macmillan is helping to support these people in Northern Ireland and
view our new survivorship publication Two million reasons.