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The new approach will ensure that high-impact devices, diagnostics and digital tools recommended by NICE, that meet the most urgent needs, are nationally reimbursed and made available across the NHS - just like medicines. 

We have long advocated for the expansion of our medicines evaluation programme to cover devices, diagnostics and digital products so we are delighted this has been included in the 10-Year health plan. It means these select life-changing technologies will now attract the same funding guarantees as medicines so patients will be able to access them faster and more fairly than ever before.

The new Rules-Based Pathway will extend NICE’s technology appraisal process - which currently applies to medicines - to include selected high-impact medical technologies such as devices, diagnostics and digital tools that meet the NHS’s most urgent needs. This new approach will come with associated reimbursement and enhanced support for adoption, helping to address longstanding variation in access. 

While not all technologies will be covered, those assessed through the expanded process will benefit from faster evidence generation, commercial support, and structured NHS rollout - helping ensure patients get access to clinically and cost-effective innovations, wherever they live. 

This is the minimum a patient should expect from a digitised health service - and we’re pleased to see it included in the 10-Year Plan. 

To give patients across the UK the best possible care, there must be a clear route to funding when NICE recommends a technology - whether it’s a medicine, device or digital tool. Until now, that principle has only applied to medicines. 

Sam Roberts, Chief Executive of NICE

Sam continued: “The 10-Year Plan’s commitment means access to life-changing technologies that address the most urgent needs will no longer be a case of a postcode lottery. Patients will get access wherever they live, the NHS will get better value by buying at scale, and we can stop relying on outdated tools that lead to poorer outcomes.” 

The government’s Industrial Strategy, published earlier this month, also signals support for this direction, confirming that industry will be given access to the NHS through a rules-based pathway for MedTech and the creation of an NHS Innovator Passport - helping to align evaluation, adoption and scaling of new technologies in a more coordinated way. 

The impact of this model is already evident. Following NICE’s December 2023 recommendation of hybrid closed loop systems - commonly known as “artificial pancreas” technology - for children and young people with type 1 diabetes, uptake jumped from just over a third to nearly two-thirds of eligible patients within a year. This was made possible by a centrally funded, five-year implementation plan agreed with NHS England. 

We will work closely with NHS England to support implementation and offer advice to help providers adopt new technologies effectively and affordably. 

With NHS waiting lists at all-time highs and services under mounting financial pressure, NICE says nationally coordinated adoption is vital to ensure value for money, reduce unwarranted variation, and make the most of cutting-edge health technologies already transforming care.