NICE to take over assessment of drugs for rare conditions

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) are to take over responsibility for the assessment of high-cost drugs for people with rare diseases.

As part of changes being introduced under the Health and Social Care Act, the regulator will inherit this function from the Advisory Group for National Specialised Services (AGNSS).

It will create an impartial and robust means of providing independent recommendations on which drugs the new NHS Commissioning Board should approve.

NICE – which has established a strong international reputation for its work since its establishment in 1999 – will take over this role in April 2013.

Health minister Lord Howe said: "NICE will wish to build on the decision-making framework that AGNSS has developed to ensure that the needs of people with rare and very rare conditions are properly considered."