An MPs’ report into the menopause has called on GPs to prescribe 12 months’ supply of HRT to eligible patients to reduce prescription charges.

The Menopause and the workplace report by the Women and Equalities Committee finds that women are paying monthly charges and being charged separately for oestrogen and progesterone products, despite NICE guidance endorsing a 12-month prescription for women with at least three months’ experience of using HRT.

The advice, which was published before the extension of SSPs limiting various HRT products to three-month supplies, is intended to be used as a stopgap until a single-cost pre-payment certificate for HRT is introduced in April 2023.

MPs have also urged Government to remove dual prescription charges for oestrogen and progesterone, replacing it with a single charge.

During the inquiry, former pharmacy minister Maria Caulfield told MPs that there had been delays with the roll out of a proposed digital pre-payment certificate.

The report concludes that cost and supply issues with HRT pose serious barriers to many seeking to manage their symptoms, and many women have no faith in their GP to diagnose accurately or provide effective treatment.