Understanding the Costs of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) in the UK

NHS Coverage and Private (Self) Payment

• In the UK, women can save money by buying a hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prepayment certificate (PPC) from the NHS if they have been prescribed an eligible HRT medicine.
  • The HRT PPC costs £19.80 for 12 months and it will cover all eligible HRT prescriptions for that period, no matter how many different medicines are needed. There’s no limit on the number of HRT prescription items you can get with it while it’s valid.
  • You’ll save money if you’re going to buy more than 2 prescription items in 12 months.
  • You can purchase an NHS HRT PPC online.
• Some women prefer to purchase and pay for their HRT privately. There are a range of reasons for this (e.g. they may be seeing a doctor privately, prefer the convenience of a private prescription, supply issues with their preferred product on the NHS, their preferred product is not available on the NHS).
• In general, private health insurers do not cover HRT.

Types of HRT and Associated Costs

Understanding Different HRT Forms: HRT comes in various forms, including tablets, skin patches, gels, sprays and implants. Each form has different pricing structures.

• Tablets: Prices range from £4 to £15 per month depending on the dosage and brand.
• Skin patches: These can cost around £15 per month, depending on the dosage and brand.
• Gels: These can cost around £30 per month depending on the dosage and brand.
• Sprays: These can cost around £25 per month depending on the dosage and brand.

Because costs will ultimately depend on the products prescribed by your doctor as part of your HRT regime, as well as the dosage, it’s best to speak with your pharmacy to find out exactly what your HRT prescription will cost you.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.