http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-18936197

I know we've got a few sufferers here, sounds like good news and potentially something that should have happened years ago

I saw this and wondered whether to post it.

The positive is basically people who are asthmatic or have COPD can get inhalers at the weekends or without having to aait for a prescription ie convenience.

The downsides are a bit more. People who are asthmatic fall into two categories - those who know their asthma inside out and those who don't look after their condition. The former are excellent, model patients. They know what to do with their inhalers, when (and if) they need steroid tablets. They come for regular reviews. They are awesome IMO.

The latter are problematic. They rely on their relievers to ease their symptoms. They don't bother with preventers. They don't have annual checks of their medication. These are the ones I worry about. They're more likely to rely on salbutamol on a regular basis. Their asthma is poorly controlled so they'll use more of it. Consequently their beta agonist receptors are downregulated and hence salbutamol doesn't work as well. So they'll take and use more of it. This can precipitate an asthma attack. Instead of seeking medical attention earlier, my concern is this will lead to poorer medication adherence, more asthma attacks and potentially more deaths.

Sounds like a good idea from my perspective, it would be much easier for me to obtain my medication this way if I were still in England.

However, I currently get my prescriptions for free courtesy of the Welsh Government so it looks like I'll be maintaining my repeat prescription.