Committee publication · Correspondence · 28 April 2026
Correspondence to the Department - US_UK Pharma Agreement
Summary
The Health and Social Care Committee writes to the Department for Health and Social Care seeking detailed scrutiny of the UK-US pharmaceutical pricing and tariffs agreement. The Committee expresses concern that the arrangement shifts financial risk to the NHS through higher net medicine prices and reduced industry repayments, while US tariff commitments are time-limited. It requests information on cost impacts to 2036, value-for-money evidence, risk management mechanisms, and access to the Department's impact assessment.
Key findings
- The Arrangement commits the UK to increasing spending on new medicines from 0.3% to 0.6% of GDP by 2036, with medicines' share of NHS spending rising from 10% to 12%.
- The Committee identifies structural, long-term UK commitments on pharmaceutical pricing against time-limited US tariff commitments, creating asymmetric risk.
- The Department has declined to release its detailed impact assessment, prompting the Committee to request confidential access.
- The Committee seeks specific measurable health outcomes the Arrangement is expected to deliver beyond existing UK pricing arrangements.
- The Committee requests clarification on mechanisms to review, amend, or exit the Arrangement if it proves unaffordable or fails to deliver value for money.
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
Layla Moran, Dr Zubir Ahmed, Health and Social Care Committee, Department for Health and Social Care, NHS
Notable line
“The Arrangement represents a significant shift in UK pharmaceutical pricing policy that results in higher net prices for new medicines and reduced industry repayments, shifting more financial risk onto the NHS.”
Key Quotes
“The Arrangement represents a significant shift in UK pharmaceutical pricing policy that results in higher net prices for new medicines and reduced industry repayments, shifting more financial risk onto the NHS.”
“These commitments are structural and long- term, while the corresponding US commitments - principally relating to tariffs - are time-limited.”
“Given that these cost increases arise from commitments negotiated outside the Department's direct control, how will future Spending Review settlements ensure that the NHS is fully compensated for these pressures …”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗