Deal on drugs pricing scheme promises to save {pound}14bn for the NHS

A deal has been reached to renew the voluntary pricing scheme for drugs in the UK, which the government claims will save the NHS £14bn over the next five years.Details were announced on 20 November of an agreement in principle between the government, NHS England, and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) on a voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing, access, and growth (VPAG).The scheme,1 which began in 2014 and was renewed in 2019, sets a cap on the total allowed sales value of branded drugs to the NHS each year as a way of limiting the profit that manufacturers can make on these medicines.Drugs represent the second highest proportion of NHS spend and were worth £19.2bn in England in 2022-23.Under the current agreement, which expires at the end of 2023, the cap grows at an agreed rate of 2% per annum and any drug sales above the…
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