Improving the health of the nation
David Blackburn 8:57am
Britain’s future prosperity, we are frequently told, lies in scientific discovery,
so it's odd that David Cameron has not given a major speech on it as prime minister until now. He will talk later today about the need to deregulate pharmaceutical licensing to
encourage private investment in public health. He views the life sciences sector as a vital source of future economic growth.
The PM will announce four new initiatives. First, seriously ill patients will be granted access to new drug treatments before they have cleared clinical trials — this measure will accelerate the introduction of innovative new treatments, encouraging drug companies to boost their research and development spending in the hope of making substantial profits in a shorter period of time than is currently possible. The government will also provide £180m as a “catalyst fund” to boost private R&D investment, and a smaller sum (perhaps only £10m) will be spent in partnership with AstraZeneca to reopen closed experiments into treating diseases such as cancer and diabetes. Finally, the government plans to alter the NHS’ constitution to give researchers and pharmaceutical companies access to patient records to target treatments more effectively, which has privacy campaigners up in arms.
Science minister David Willetts has been across the airwaves this morning to explain the deregulatory policy. He has also written an op-ed for the Times (£) in which he says:
'The Medical Research Council alone has identified 360 promising ideas developed under its auspices, 280 of which are awaiting commercialisation. But we will never persuade investors to fund these innovations unless we can show that the NHS is open to help and then to adopting them for UK patients if successful. We need to make it much easier to show “proof of concept” in a hospital environment. Then the private sector will invest.'
The media and various esteemed public bodies are very excited about these proposals — the Times, for instance, names it ‘Cameron’s prescription for economic growth’, while the Royal Society calls it a ‘great opportunity’. But it’s worth pointing out that the government’s investment pales next to the £500m it has just reallocated within the HS2 budget to build a tunnel under the Tory heartlands in the Chilterns. Perceptions count for a lot. However, the controversial data sharing initiative could herald a radical development. The government has been debating whether to share personal records with the private sector. The argument has been long and fierce — with Steve Hilton trying to cajole the cautious forces in Whitehall and the coalition into action. Perhaps today’s announcement signifies that he has won the wider battle.
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TomTom
December 5th, 2011 9:17am Report this commentFirst proposed by Alan Milburn in 2001 Health & Social Care Act giving the Secretary of State the power to distribute Patient Records to whomever he deemed fit without patient approval. The other case, simply gives drug companies "volunteers" for drug trials. Lobbyists have done well, no doubt fine wining and dining
Mike, Brighton
December 5th, 2011 9:32am Report this commentMore "picking winners" with taxpayers money (or rather debt) by a quasi-socialist government. Always worked so well in the past.....
TrevorsDen
December 5th, 2011 9:34am Report this commentI am not sure the details that you have just outlined can simply be run up the flagpole without much serious thought.
So no wonder they are only just being announced.
The HS2 money will come from somewhere else in its budget and will not be spent before 2017/18/19.
HJ
December 5th, 2011 10:26am Report this commentThe idea that measures such as this will make any measurable difference to the health of the population is laughable.
The biggest factors in health are lifestyle, diet, not smoking, good sanitation and housing. If people simply exercised a bit and stopped eating themselves stupidly fat, then it would make far more difference.
Even when it comes to medical care, you could cut spending in half and still get 90% of the benefit because most benefit from medical care comes from relatively simple, relatively cheap measures and treatments. After that, you're into the law of diminishing returns.
strapworld
December 5th, 2011 10:53am Report this commentCan we trust this, or any future, government to ensure all the details handed over are in fact without names and addresses and DHSS/NHS or hospital numbers?
Can an individual object under the Data Protection Act?
Being ever the cynic, I see massive injections of funding to the Conservative Party from the very happy drug companies who have been chasing this information for years.
Bonzodog
December 5th, 2011 10:54am Report this commentPrivacy ... opt out. Sorry but I was a biomedical scientist and I know what a treasure trove the NHS records are. given my medical history I would be honoured to help!
Baroness Helena Handcart QC
December 5th, 2011 11:14am Report this commentMore effective ways to improve the health of the nation would include massive tax hikes on tobacco, alcohol and foods high in saturated fat and sugar. This is not a question of banning, merely of reflecting the cost to society of over consumption. It should be pointed out that a perfectly adequate diet, low in fat and sugar, can be obtained even from Tesco and that no one actually needs to eat Pot Noodle or microwavable burgers. Additionally, and this will chime with your London reader, elimination of discounted bus travel for bloated teens: make the buggers walk instead of getting on and travelling for one stop, hastening home, one assumes, to watch some vile TV talentless show. It won't work, of course, and the underclass's muffin tops will squash us all.
Anne Wotana Kaye 1
December 5th, 2011 11:52am Report this commentJust more Big Brother. Medical Records, names of our GPs, all being handed out for 'our benefit'. All this to offer us better health, better service - bull sh*t!
Tarka the Rotter
December 5th, 2011 12:20pm Report this commentTrust government to preserve anonymity of NHS patient data?????????? Are you mad?
Sir Everard Digby
December 5th, 2011 12:36pm Report this commentWhatever safeguards are put in place, the private sector exists to profit and will stretch any safeguard's boundaries to the limit to make more money -then fight any infringement of the safeguards in court.
Government will say 'there are safeguards in place' but will take no effective action to police them as breaches will be a private matter. Thus neatly avoiding any fall out from selling our data.
Anyway,why the outrage? After all,our public finance is provided by private banks,so this is but a small step further. Ah,the sweet smell of corporatism...
Serenity now
December 5th, 2011 12:40pm Report this commentA long overdue boost for what is one of the few industries in which the UK still has a competitive advantage.
By the way, it's AstraZeneca not Astra-Zeneca.
TomTom
December 5th, 2011 1:55pm Report this commentit's AstraZeneca not Astra-Zeneca
and Swedish
In2minds
December 5th, 2011 4:45pm Report this commentPatients choice? This patient wants the NHS data kept as it is, private. They are my medical records after all and I don't trust the state.
Hampy
December 5th, 2011 6:23pm Report this commentI thought the post-war declaration of Helsinki forbade use of an individual's clinical records without their informed consent?
David Lindsay
December 5th, 2011 9:22pm Report this commentIf the Conservative Party had declared its true health policy before the General Election, then Labour would have won outright.
Cameron's and Lansley's present and future employers in the American private health companies, which pay out almost as much in fines every year as they do in medical care but which Obama is busily putting out of business in their own country, are to be given access to our NHS records through their interests in drug manufacturers. I think that we can all see for what we are being softened up.
"Consultation", we are promised. I am not aware of anyone's attempting to consult me. Are you aware of anyone's attempting to consult you? No, I didn't think that you would be.
It's like Tony Blair and Alan Milburn never went away. All this, and John Hutton still running pensions policy, too.
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