Guidance on the correct use of the ‘FS’ (0017) exemption category
Community Pharmacy England would like to remind pharmacy owners of the correct use of the exemption reason ‘Was prescribed free-of-charge STI sexual health medication’ coded ‘0017’.
This follows information provided by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) indicating that in February 2025, 575 EPS prescription items were submitted with the EPS exemption code ‘0017’ without any ‘FS’ prescriber endorsement present against the items. As a result, the NHSBSA deducted prescription charges for 289 of these items that were submitted as free-of-charge. For the remaining 286 items, no charges were deducted for these because the items ordered were mainly contraceptives which are treated as free-of-charge items by the NHSBSA. Please note where only contraceptives are prescribed, pharmacy teams should select the ‘was prescribed free-of-charge contraceptives‘ which uses exemption code ‘0010’ in EPS. The ‘FS’ exemption code ‘0017’ should NOT be applied to prescriptions for contraceptives only.
Community Pharmacy England has produced a number of resources including a Funding & Reimbursement Shorts video ‘FS’ endorsed prescriptions for free supply of sexual health treatments that explains:
- Which treatments are covered by the ‘FS’ endorsement;
- How prescribers should apply the ‘FS’ endorsement to prescriptions;
- Dispensing and claiming for prescriptions with ‘FS’ endorsed items; and
- Correct submission of prescriptions with ‘FS’ endorsed items.
Correct handling of ‘FS’ endorsed prescriptions
Guidance from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) states that prescribers should not include items classed as free-of-charge (for e.g. STI treatments endorsed ‘FS’ and/or contraceptives) on the same prescription form as other chargeable items. This is because there may be a risk of incorrect number of prescription charge deductions being made against such prescriptions if the wrong EPS exemption category is selected. For example, if an EPS prescription includes a free-of-charge ‘FS’ endorsed item and a chargeable item, and the prescription is submitted with the EPS exemption reason ‘0017’ code selected for ‘Was prescribed free-of-charge STI sexual health medication‘, a charge deduction will apply to the chargeable item(s) even if the patient was exempt from prescription charges for other reasons, for example, if the patient also had a valid medical exemption certificate. If the patient does not hold a valid exemption reason, only the free-of-charge items should be supplied for free, and charges should be collected for any chargeable items with the reverse of the prescription form/EPS token completed to confirm that a charge was levied for these. See cpe.org.uk/exemptions/.
The table below provides information on handing prescriptions with only ‘FS’ endorsed items and those that have both ‘FS’ endorsed items and other chargeable items on the same form.
| Patient status | Items on prescription | Patient declaration and prescription submission guidance |
| Not exempt from prescription charges | ‘FS’ item(s) only |
EPS: No patient tick box on the reverse of EPS Token. Use message code (0017) for ‘was prescribed free-of-charge sexual health medication Note: some pharmacy systems may automatically apply this code if only ‘FS’ endorsed items are prescribed. |
| Paper: No patient tick box on the reverse of paper FP10 form. Prescription must be placed in a red separator with the exempt section in the end of month prescription bundle. |
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| ‘FS’ item and other free-of-charge item e.g. contraceptives | EPS: Use code (0010) for ‘was prescribed free-of-charge contraceptives’ or message code (0017) for ‘was prescribed free-of-charge sexual health medication’. |
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| Paper: No patient tick box on the reverse of paper FP10 form. Prescription must be placed in a red separator with the exempt section in the end of month prescription bundle. |
||
| ‘FS’ item and other chargeable items Note: Prescribers should AVOID MIXING free-of- charge items with chargeable items on the same form. |
EPS: Select the appropriate prescription message code (0001) to indicate that the patient has paid the appropriate charges. | |
| Paper: The reverse of paper FP10 form must be signed with a declaration applied to clearly indicate the total amount of prescription charges collected for chargeable items Prescription must be placed in a red separator with the chargeable section in the end of month prescription bundle. | ||
| Exempt from prescription charges |
‘FS’ item and other chargeable items Note: Prescribers should AVOID MIXING free-of-charge items with chargeable items on the same form. |
EPS: Select the appropriate message code relating to the patient’s actual reason for exemption from prescription charges for e.g. if the patient holds a valid medical exemption certificate use message code ‘E’ (0006). |
| Paper: The reverse of paper FP10 form must be signed with a declaration applied based on the patient’s actual reason for exemption from prescription charges for e.g. medical exemption certificate. Prescription must be placed in a red separator with the exempt section in the end of month prescription bundle. |
Further information and resources:
Dispensing Factsheet: Prescriber ‘FS’ endorsement for free supply of sexual health treatment
Guidance on handling ‘FS’ endorsed prescriptions for free supply of sexual health treatments
