Firstly, COI disclosures should be comprehensive about the financial reliance of patient groups on industry. Until governmental funding fills existing resource gaps among patient groups, NICE should increase its timeframe of COI disclosure to more than 12 months to avoid overlooking more historical commercial ties. Thirdly, many patient groups lack resources to represent themselves. Contributions from patient groups and experts are important to capturing the lived experience of a condition that cannot always be gleaned from clinical trials. To safeguard reimbursement recommendations from vested interests, NICE should revise its COI disclosure and management policies.

Source: The Guardian June 01, 2023 03:48 UTC