You get free prescriptions because of your age, Balders (though I don’t know how you got them at 59 unless it was for reasons other than your age. Everybody over 60 gets free prescriptions and it’s been that way for many years). For free dental treatment you have to be in receipt of certain benefits. There are other qualifications most of which I imagine do not apply to you. Full details here:
http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1786.aspx?CategoryID=74
Similarly with free eye tests:
http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcosts/Pages/Eyecarecosts.aspx
Anyway, if you are getting them free of charge good luck to you. I don’t think that was really AOG’s point. These free facilities are only available to a very limited number of UK citizens and they are not even, as Islay contends, available to all those who are unemployed. If the country has enough money to provide them free of charge it’s a bit rich that they are not available to people who have contributed to the pot from which they are paid but they are available to anyone who pitches up illegally and uninvited.
“I get free dental treatment because my 3 pensions together ( state and 2 private ) are so low I qualify for 'Pension Credit'
This is despite working continuously from age 17 to 65 ,paying tax and NI .”
So you should, Eddie. That’s why you and other like you spend your working lives paying in. You should not be expected to fund people who pitch up on the doorstep and who have not paid anything in and in many cases probably never will.