The cost of a QALY

Abstract

Background: Current regulation of drug approvals has caused considerable controversy as entrusted to the National Institute of Clinical Excellence, and has led to a lack of availability of modern medicines on the basis of calculations made of 'value'. Aim: We have examined the assessment tool used by National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) to establish the cost of drugs in order to assess whether it is a reasonable and objective evaluation methodology. Design: A review of the methods of analysis. Methods: An objective assessment of the value of the Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY). Results: We conclude that current methods used by NICE to assess drug costs are arbitrary, subjective and fail to reflect the true costs for patients, which are grossly overestimated. Conclusion: NICE needs to look again at the evaluation methods for calculating drug costs, and change their methodology from a subjective to an objective measure of true cost. © The Author 2010. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Association of Physicians. All rights reserved.