NICE extends international collaboration to streamline processes 4 May 2023

The UK’s National Institute for health and Care Excellence (NICE) has announced that it will be working closely with the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) and the US Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) to find common ground and smooth processes around the handling of confidential information about health technologies. 

The three organisations have been working together on a more consistent approach to clinical data and have published a joint statement outlining the changes. This means that, from May 2023, NICE technology appraisals and CADTH will no longer routinely redact clinical data that is awaiting publication when they publish their guidance. ICER will allow redaction of data that is formally planned for public release for 12 months, as academic in confidence. 

This work forms part of NICE’s new proportionate approach to evaluations of health technologies and it also launched its interim methods and processes manual on 24 April, which details how it will accelerate evaluations of simpler treatments.