“In the past, many small companies would identify the investment environment as their biggest single obstacle,” explains UK BioIndustry Association chief executive, Nigel Gaymond, “but what investors are looking for is the opportunity to add value quickly.” He believes that making it easier for UK-based companies to build working relationships with the NHS will indirectly stimulate investment in the bioscience sector. Earlier this year, Gaymond, welcomed the government's 'Plan for Growth,' an outline of the government's current economic policy objectives. The measures Osborne recently announced ensure the funding will be available for the parts of the plan with the potential to affect life sciences companies.
The new measures promise to streamline procurement, decrease bureaucracy, improve access to the NHS and promote a more efficient regulatory environment for clinical trials. For example, adoption of a mechanism for buying innovation and more efficient procurement policies is among the key elements of the plan intended to make it easier for small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to access the procurement power of the NHS. The proposed mechanism builds on the existing Innovative Technology Adoption Procurement Programme. The program encourages NHS-wide adoption of high-impact innovative medical technologies that can improve the quality of patient care. Companies are invited to share information about a technology that could have an impact thereby improving SME access and a path to integration into the healthcare system for their products and services.
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