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HWN Suggests

NICE and Fair? Health Technology Assessment Policy Under the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 1999–2018

In any healthcare system operating with finite resources, decisions must be made about how those resources are allocated. This inevitably creates both ‘winners’ and ‘losers’, as some groups find their needs prioritised while others are prevented from accessing potentially beneficial technologies. Healthcare priority-setting is thus an essential but often contentious activity, which must be subject to robust justification if its outcomes are to be considered ethically, socially and politically acceptable.

The heated debate that often surrounds priority-setting is reflected in the experiences of the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Tasked by the UK government…

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Articles of Interest

National Institute for Clinical Excellence: NICE works

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence was established in 1999. Its original remit was to undertake technology appraisals of (mainly) new interventions and to develop clinical guidelines. In providing both forms of guidance, it was required to take into account both clinical and cost effectiveness. After a difficult first few months, it gained the confidence and trust of the professions.

Saying No Isn't NICE — The Travails of Britain's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence

The NHS usually does not provide medicines or treatments that are not recommended by NICE — although exceptions are possible.NICE (www.nice.org.uk), however, has been criticized for the slow release of its appraisals, which has delayed the availability of some treatments that . . .

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We provide national guidance and advice to improve health and social care.