UK's NICE reportedly planning to charge companies for assessments

2 October 2016

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the medicines cost-effectiveness watchdog for England and Wales, plans to introduce the fees next year for pharma companies requesting appraisals of their drugs for use in Britain’s National Health Service, according to a report by The Sunday Times.

It will be the first time it has charged for assessing whether medicines offer value for money, which is a requirement before they can be prescribed by NHS doctors. The costs of seeking appraisals could deter start-ups and delay lifesaving treatments, the newspaper notes.

According to proposals seen by The Sunday Times, the NICE will charge as much as £282,000 ($365,470) per assessment. The fee, which could be as low as £99,000, will be the same for all companies, regardless of their size or ability to expend these amounts per appraisal.

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