Category Archives: Pharma

Threats to Mankind from Drug Resistant Bacteria and Viruses

The risk of an end to the human race may sound like science fiction. However, there are only a small number of threats that could theoretically lead to the extinction of mankind. The four main concerns that most experts share … Continue reading

Posted in Business, David Cameron, Drugs, Global Health, GPs, International, Most Significant, NHS, Pharma, Public Health, Rare conditions, Research, Vaccination | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Threats to Mankind from Drug Resistant Bacteria and Viruses

Are pharmaceutical mega-mergers in the public interest?

The main reason for governments around the world to encourage the pharmaceutical industry is to support Research and Development –  R&D – with a view to the discovery of new drugs of future benefit to mankind. Commercial pharmaceutical companies have played … Continue reading

Posted in Business, competition, Drugs, Innovation, International, Pharma, Policy, Research, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Medical advisory body “NICE” should not spend too much time valuing drugs.

The UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (“NICE”) is currently holding a public consultation over its proposals for evaluating drugs. Drugs that are approved by NICE automatically become available for doctors to prescribe under the NHS throughout England … Continue reading

Posted in Business, CCGs, Commissioning, Department of Health, Drugs, Elderly, equality, Genetics, GPs, Health and Wellbeing, Health Bill, Health reform, Inequality, Innovation, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, NHS reforms, Patients, Pharma, Policy, Public Health, Research, Technology, Uncategorized, Wellbeing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guest Blogspot: Negotiations with the UK Government over pharmaceutical pricing have achieved a good result for patients, the NHS and the industry.

The UK Government and the pharmaceutical industry shared many objectives throughout the recent drug pricing negotiations. For example, there was always broad agreement that: The total future drug bill needed to be affordable in the context of other spending in … Continue reading

Posted in Andrew Lansley, Business, Cancer, Department of Health, Drugs, Innovation, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, Patients, Pharma, Research, Smoking ban | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Access to orphan medicines: rare expertise and patient experience needs to be core part of decision

Blogpost by Leela Barham, Independent Health Economist and 2020health Research Fellow for Empower Access to Medicines Orphan medicines are used to treat some of the rarest conditions; conditions that affect less than 5 per 10,000 people in Europe.  Some of … Continue reading

Posted in Drugs, Patients, Pharma, Research | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Guest Blogspot: Think carefully about value-based drug pricing in the UK and let common sense prevail.

David Cameron and Jeremy Hunt share an important skill. They both have firsts from Oxford in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE). I am not the greatest fan of this course because I would like to see more scientists, engineers and … Continue reading

Posted in Business, competition, David Cameron, Department of Health, Drugs, Election, Jeremy Hunt, NHS, Patients, Pharma, Policy, Primary Care | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guest Blogspot: Do private patients in the UK help or harm the NHS?

Private medicine like private education and first-class travel can stir up feelings of resentment between the “haves” and “have-nots”. A short blog like this one has no possibility of uniting stereotypical politicians from the left and right wings of politics. … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Department of Health, Drugs, Elderly, GPs, Health Bill, Health Team, Healthcare, Hospitals, Inequality, mental health, NHS, Nursing, Patient choice, Patients, Pharma, Policy, Private, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guest Blogspot: A wrong decision on UK drug pricing could seriously undermine all the good work that HM Treasury and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills have done to encourage the UK pharmaceutical industry.

The recent local elections highlight the political dangers ahead. The current UK coalition government has lost popularity through decisions that do not all relate to austerity measures. Shortly after the General Election Andrew Lansley’s plans to increase the say of … Continue reading

Posted in Andrew Lansley, Business, Department of Health, Drugs, Election, Global Health, Health Bill, NHS, Patient choice, Patients, Pharma, Policy, Research, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guest Blogspot: Pharmaceutical R & D – the value of radical innovation versus incremental progress

What we really want is affordable products that benefit patients, whether or not they are “innovative” in the usual sense of the word. Scientific innovation is not a medical end in itself. The ultimate aim of pharmaceutical R&D is to … Continue reading

Posted in Business, competition, Department of Health, Drugs, Emerging technologies, Finance, Healthcare, Innovation, NHS, Patients, Pharma, Policy, Research, Technology, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Political Mood Change over the NHS, Innovation and the Pharmaceutical Industry in 2011

As 2011 draws to a close now is a good time to reflect on the period since the last UK General Election in 2010. We must consider what we have done right, what we have done wrong and what remains … Continue reading

Posted in Business, David Cameron, Department of Health, Drugs, Election, Genetics, Health Bill, Health Team, Hospitals, Innovation, NHS, Pharma, Policy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment