Health and care sector latest developments
NICE approves Wegovy to prevent heart attacks and strokes
NICE has approved Wegovy to prevent heart attacks and strokes among patients with cardiovascular disease.
The drug will be available for 1.2 million overweight people with heart and circulatory disease on the NHS from this summer.
Approval followed clinical trial data showing the treatment reduced the risk of serious heart problems by 20 per cent.
National clinical director for cardiovascular disease prevention at NHS England, Helen Williams, said that the approval could "give many people the chance at a longer and healthier life."
Mackey: Iran war threatens “huge shock” for NHS finances
The NHS will need extra funding from government if the Iran war drives large price increases, which could amount to a “huge shock”, Sir Jim Mackey has warned.
Speaking to HSJ, the NHS England chief executive said he was “very worried” about the rising costs and supply chain challenges being driven by the conflict.
He said the NHS and Treasury would need to review the consequences and added: “The idea that [the NHS] just swallows [a significant] impact is just not reasonable”.
The NHSEngland boss also revealed every integrated care board except one had submitted a balanced plan for 2026/27 – with only around ten providers contributing to a total planned deficit of roughly £420 million. The figures are still being finalised, but will represent a big reduction on the £2.5billion deficit plan this time last year.
However, these plans have not factored in additional costs likely to result from steep rises in energy prices, and other inflation caused by the Iran war.
He said some trusts saw steep energy cost rises when the Ukraine war began, and: “We could be in that territory again, where it’s just a massive number for [covering the costs].”
NHS pay inequality widens
NHS England has reported a growing gender pay gap, rising to 11.2 per cent, with women earning notably less on average despite making up most of the workforce.
As reported by HSJ, the service also saw its ethnicity pay gap increase again, which it said was “primarily due to the higher concentration of white staff in the most senior and better-paid roles” , while the disability pay gap widened, though this may partly reflect improved reporting.
Overall, the findings show the persistent inequalities in senior representation, even as NHS England says it will “monitor and report pay gap trends”.
Concerns grow over corridor care measure
NHS England’s new definition of A&E corridor care has been criticised by experts as overly complex and ‘easy to game’, with concerns that the 45 minute threshold and vague criteria could undercount patients treated in inappropriate spaces.
According to HSJ, while organisations like the Royal College of Nursing welcome efforts to track the issue, they warn that the rules are ‘open to interpretation’ and may not reflect real patient experiences.
Critics argue that the focus should instead be on overall waiting times, as the current measure risks concealing the true scale of pressure in emergency departments.
Trust halts launch of AI tool that lacked NHS England-required sign-off
An NHS trust has abandoned plans to trial a major US supplier’s ambient voice technology after concerns were raised about its compliance with NHS England accreditation requirements, HSJ reveals.
Epic Systems had this week planned to launch a trial of its native AI Charting functionality at Frimley Health Foundation Trust, despite not holding Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) Class I medical device status, which is required of all AI scribing tools capable of summarisation.
Frimley Health has since confirmed the trial did not go ahead as it had not gone through the trust’s internal governance processes and has been paused pending further work.
MP rejects Palantir’s claims that criticism of NHS England deal is ‘ideologically motivated’
Claims by Palantir that concerns over the US data analytics company’s multimillion-pound NHS contract are “ideologically motivated” have been rejected by the chair of a parliamentary committee.
It was also appropriate for the government to seek guidance on activating a break contract in the deal, said Chi Onwurah, a Labour MP who heads the science, innovation and technology select committee.
Louis Mosley, the executive vice-chair of Palantir in the UK, had urged the government not to give in to “ideologically motivated campaigners” as ministers explored a way out of a £330 million NHS contract with the tech company for England.
Ministers have sought advice on triggering a break clause in Palantir’s deal to deliver the Federated Data Platform (FDP) amid questions over the company’s presence in the public sector.
