A faster NICE and a ‘right’ to drug access in NHS Constitution
pharmafile | July 1, 2008 | News story | Sales and Marketing | NICE
The problem of access to new cancer treatments and other medicines is to be addressed as part of the newly unveiled NHS Constitution.
The proposals to create an NHS Constitution are the centrepiece of the government's plans for the National Health Service as it celebrates its sixtieth anniversary.
The first part of the initiative on medicines involves cutting NICE appraisal times from the current two-year average lead time to just six months. The government says this means that most drugs will be appraised within 'a few months' of their launch in the UK.
The second element is that the rights of patients in relation to drug access will now be clearly defined.
Patients will be guaranteed a 'right' to drugs and treatments which NICE has approved. They will also have a right to expect local decisions on drugs pre-NICE appraisal will be "made rationally following proper consideration of the evidence".
The government says if the local NHS decides not to fund a drug that a patient and their doctor feel would be right for them, the PCT will have to clearly explain the decision to them.
For the UK pharmaceutical industry, the proposals look like the breakthrough it has been waiting a number of years for. Dr Richard Barker, director general at the ABPI, welcomed the move enthusiastically.
"Collectively, the measures announced today by Lord Darzi represent the basis for a huge leap forward in driving the use of best available treatment, including the uptake of NICE guidance, across the NHS.
"The task is now to deliver on the promise, so that people across the UK have full and fair access to innovative, life-extending medicines, demonstrated to be clinically-effective and cost-effective.
"These measures are good news for patients, who can now look forward to receiving the same standard of care wherever they live, rather than on the basis of a postcode lottery.
"Britain's innovative pharmaceutical industry will also gain, by serving a more innovative customer, one that will also be a more attractive location for future clinical trials – a further benefit for UK patients."
The new rules could raise prescription spending, but the government had clearly tied in this announcement with the recently agreed deal with the pharma industry to cut the NHS drugs budget by 5%.
Alan Johnson has also mentioned an extra £100 million in central funding to pay for more drugs and treatments, although full details of this money have not yet been supplied.
The Constitution and patient rights
Opening up the plans for public consultation, Health Secretary Alan Johnson said: "This is a momentous point in the history of the NHS. As we approach the sixtieth anniversary of our health service, it is striking how its founding principles still endure and have resonance for staff, patients and public alike."
He added: "The content of the Constitution was not dreamt up by me or civil servants in Whitehall. It is something that has arisen out of discussions with thousands of NHS staff and patients across the country."
Johnson said the proposals strike a balance between the "need for clarity and avoiding undue litigation, between the need to state what is enduring while ensuring the NHS has the flexibility to change and keep pace with rising expectations and medical advances."
The Constitution contains a number of rights for patients, including:
* The right to drugs and treatments approved by NICE for use in the NHS if clinically appropriate.
Patients will have a right to expect local decisions on funding of other drugs, where NICE has yet to issue guidance or where NICE will not be appraising a drug, to be made rationally following proper consideration of the evidence. If the local NHS decides not to fund a drug that a patient and their doctor feel would be right for them, the PCT will have to explain that decision to them. The Department of Health will work with NICE to speed up the process for appraising new drugs so that the majority of its appraisal guidance can be issued within a few months of a new drug's launch.
* The right to make defined choices about your NHS care with clear options.
This is a new right allowing patients to make choices about their healthcare based on information made easily accessible by the NHS so those choices are real and informed. It also includes the right to choose a GP practice and express a preference for consulting a particular doctor.
* The right to be treated with dignity and respect and given a professional standard of care, by appropriately qualified and experienced staff in a clean and safe environment
* The right to complaint and redress.
The Constitution includes a number of rights and pledges to ensure patients and the public can complain and have access to swift redress if they are unhappy with their healthcare.
The government says it doesn't want the new Constitution to "create a litigious culture" NHS Constitution, but does want it to have "enough teeth to make a difference".
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