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2h ago

UK Signals Openness to Higher NHS Drug Prices After Pharma Backlash

Lord Patrick Vallance said higher NHS payments for some medicines may be necessary to keep drugmakers investing in the UK.

Lilly Chair and CEO Dave Ricks speaks during a press conference for Eli Lilly and Company in Houston, Texas, U.S., September 23, 2025. REUTERS/Antranik Tavitian/File Photo
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Overview

  • Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks called Britain “probably the worst country in Europe” for drug prices and urged scrapping the VPAG rebate, warning the UK could see fewer new medicines and less investment.
  • Major projects have been paused or cancelled this year, including Merck’s £1bn London research centre and AstraZeneca’s £200m Cambridge expansion, taking the tally to roughly £1.8bn of stalled UK investment.
  • Lilly temporarily paused UK shipments of Mounjaro and raised its private-market price by up to 170%, with reports indicating the NHS is not set to pay the higher price.
  • Negotiations over the VPAG scheme collapsed in August, with ministers saying they remain open to engagement as the government also discusses pricing and tariff issues with the US.
  • Offering a counterpoint to the pullbacks, Moderna opened a new site in Oxfordshire tied to more than £1bn in UK R&D, and the government launched a £50m fund to attract large life-sciences projects.