A report has named the UK as one of the worst developed countries in the world in terms of access to MS drugs – prompting the MS Society to call for an urgent update of the clinical guidelines for MS.
The Department of Health has published a report showing that the UK ranked 13 out of 14 developed countries for use of MS drugs. In fact, the UK usage of MS drugs falls more than 50% below the average for all other countries included in the report. Laura Weir, head of Policy and Campaigns at the MS Society, stated: “These statistics are very disappointing. Although drugs that help in the fight against MS are improving, access to specialist neurology services across the country is patchy and the NICE clinical guideline for MS is hopelessly out of date. This means that the latest drugs, like Sativex and Tysabri, are not contained in the guidelines which outline the best practice treatment for the condition. “This report shows the urgent need for an update of the guideline and the development of a NICE quality standard for MS to ensure that the 100,000 people with MS in the UK have access to the best and most up-to-date treatment for their condition. No-one should have to fight to access the drugs they need.”
