Your biweekly update on health economics, policy, and impact
See how disease severity shapes priorities, watch key health policy insights from 2025 and our predictions in 2026, and see why investing in ALS treatments is timely and strategic.
The global decline in immunisation rates is a growing public health challenge, and is set to be one of the shifts defining health policy in 2026. Addressing the root causes of this decline, including lack of accessibility and vaccine hesitancy, must be a core priority for health systems going forward, especially in light of an expanding portfolio of life course vaccinations and the strong evidence around their health and societal value.
This then raises the question of how health systems should evolve to keep pace with a rapidly changing world. Part of this lies in how societal preferences are considered in health technology assessments (HTA). Our most recently published peer-review paper sought to understand how NICE’s severity modifier aligned with public preferences, concluding that if NICE seeks to reflect societal preferences in its assessments, it may need to revise the parameters of its modifier.
New peer-reviewed journal on how well NICE’s severity modifier reflect public values
Understanding Societal Preferences for Priority by Disease Severity in England and Wales
A new peer-reviewed Value in Health study finds that the public places greater value on health gains for patients with more severe disease, starting at much lower levels of health shortfall than NICE’s current thresholds. If NICE aims to better reflect societal preferences, the parameters of the severity modifier may need to be reconsidered.
In January we recapped the biggest topics in health economics from 2025 across policy, prevention, and health technology assessments (HTA) and shared predictions and themes that will define the year ahead.
ALS is at a turning point – and investing in treatments makes strategic sense
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) – the most common form of motor neurone disease – is a rare but devastating disease. It places a heavy toll on patients, families, and healthcare systems, yet progress in the development of new diagnostics and treatments has so far been limited.
See how much you know about ALS, its impact, and emerging treatments. For the full picture, check out our publication, The commercial case for investing in ALS, and learn more about the latest insights and opportunities in ALS research.
