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A deal that gives the US zero tariffs on imports of UK pharmaceuticals in return NHS Increasing spending on medicines would cost around £1 billion, Downing Street Said.
The agreement raises the UK’s payment threshold for new medicines by 25%, meaning some that would have been rejected as being too expensive can be approved – such as cancer treatments and treatments for rare diseases.
The Prime Minister’s spokesman rejected reports that the move would cost the NHS an average of around £3 billion a year by 2029, saying the figure would be around £1 billion by that time.
He said that as the costs gradually increase National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) approves the treatment.
“Costs will start low but will increase over time as NICE approves more life-improving and life-saving medicines.
“The total cost over the expenditure review period is expected to be around £1 billion, but the final cost will obviously depend on which medicines NICE decides to approve, and the actual consumption of these.
“This is not something we can understand in advance, as it depends on which medicines come to market and are assessed as approved for use on the NHS accordingly.”
The agreement also includes reducing reimbursement rates on NHS drug prices by 15% from 2026.
This is the amount that pharmaceutical companies pay back to the NHS to ensure that it does not spend more than its allocated budget for branded medicines.
Under the agreement, America will not pay import tax on medicines and treatments for three years. trump The administration has said this will encourage British investment in American pharmaceutical companies.
It comes after warnings that US pharma companies would close their sites in the UK if the NHS did not pay more for drugs.
Earlier this month, US Ambassador Warren Stephens said US businesses would put off future investment if “changes were not made rapidly”.
This controversy is seen as a reason why America is based merck And AstraZeneca canceled or halted investments in the UK in recent months.