NICE rethinking value of long-term benefit
The U.K.'s NICE is asking for comments on an advisory panel's recommendation to increase the value attached to a drug's long-term benefit when calculating cost-effectiveness estimates per quality-adjusted life year (QALY). According to a report issued Friday, members voted 19-1 at a meeting in November that NICE should discount future costs and benefits differently. NICE currently applies a 3.5% discount rate to a drug's costs and benefits. The panel agreed the discount rate applied to costs should remain constant, but felt rates for future benefits could be varied. For example, panelists suggested that drugs with a high initial cost, but a benefit of more than 30 years, or those providing a total cure, could be discounted at a lower rate than drugs with a shorter benefit. ...