Bluebird bio’s decision to focus on the US market is being seen as a broader signal of the need for changes in market access policies to enable gene therapies to be made available for European patients. Only collaborative work will create solutions acceptable to payers and companies, and finding an acceptable price that both can live with will be crucial.

Stakeholders are calling for NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I) and the health technology assessment body NICE to bring more flexibility into England’s new Innovative Medicines Fund, which is due for launch later in 2021.

The Innovative Medicines Fund, due for launch in England later this year, may provide industry with an opportunity to hold key public bodies to account.

While they await further details on England’s new Innovative Medicines Fund, industry and other stakeholders are asking questions about how far the fund – due for launch later this year – will be adapted to fit non-cancer therapies.

Industry has paid millions of pounds under the ongoing UK Voluntary Scheme on Branded Medicines Pricing and Access but there are concerns over poor progress with other commitments that were promised under the scheme for managing branded medicine spend by the National Health Service.

The COVID-19 pandemic will have a lasting impact on the world, including on Health Technology Assessment (HTA). The debate on how HTA should change as a result of COVID-19 is gaining momentum, but could a wider approach to value and a higher threshold be a false dawn?