
Medicine prescription charges are being scrapped in a bid to ease pressure on household budgets, and the health system.
At a cost of $619 million over four years, free access to medication is set to benefit an estimated three million Kiwis, including 770,00 over 65.
The $5 dollar charge is a barrier for low-income families accessing medication, with 135,000 adults not collecting their prescription due to cost in the last financial year.
Removing the charge is also hoped to reduce demand on hospitals.
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