Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the estimated £560 million savings arising from the introduction of generic forms of SGLT2 inhibitor treatment in 2025–26 and 2026–27 on cardiovascular health.

NHS England has provided guidance and data to systems on how to maximise the savings opportunity associated with the introduction of generic forms of SGLT2 inhibitor treatment, as well as encouraging the assessment and monitoring of SGLT2 inhibitor uptake as a whole. Integrated care boards (ICBs) in their role as strategic commissioners are accountable for determining the extent to which these savings will be reinvested into further improving cardiovascular health.

The adoption of biosimilar and generic medicines is vital for expanding and speeding up access to effective treatments as well as for generating significant savings for the National Health Service, which can be reinvested into innovative treatments. Through NHS England’s Best Value Biologicals Framework, we are ensuring that patients start on the most cost-effective biologics where clinically appropriate, and that existing patients are switched swiftly and safely. The NHS has already achieved £1.2 billion savings over the past three years.

The Life Sciences Sector Plan includes targeted action to improve National Health Service uptake of cost-effective medicines, including off-patent products, with NHS England developing national programmes that promote rapid adoption of biosimilars and best value treatments. Furthermore, through the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE’s) Whole Lifecycle Approach to guidance development, NICE will continually review what works best, establish where care can be improved, and highlight where treatments should evolve over time. NICE recently updated its guidance on heart failure to recommend that patients receive medicines earlier in the clinical pathway, which could prevent approximately 3,000 deaths and 5,500 hospital admissions in England caused by chronic heart failure each year.