BIA says NICE review fails to match ambitions

The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published its conclusions to its review of its methods and processes for health technology assessments, which has received a mixed reaction form the biopharma industry.

Commenting on the review, Paul Catchpole, value and access policy director at the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), believes that – taken in their entirety - the changes will move the needle in the right direction for NHS patients.

He said: “The changes set to be approved by the NICE Board will help support better access to life-changing medicines, today and in the future, while helping to deliver the UK Government’s Life Sciences Vision.  These long-awaited changes mean that NICE’s methods and processes will better reflect the incredible advances in medicines discovery. We share NICE’s ambition for fairness and equity of access to the latest medicines, including those for rare diseases. Rapid implementation will be vital so that patients can benefit as soon as possible.