Drug companies granted "promising innovative medicine" designations in the UK on the basis of early clinical data are encouraged to seek joint scientific consultations with the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and cost effectiveness-oriented National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. But too few are taking advantage of that opportunity, MHRA Chairman Michael Rawlins says, and instead seem to be seeking advice from the European Medicines Agency.
He assumes that in doing so, drug makers are taking a