For patients living with Type 2 diabetes in the United Kingdom, a more convenient treatment option may be on the horizon after the country's drug price watchdog recommended Eli Lilly’s once-weekly insulin injectable, Onswik, for coverage on the National Health Service.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) serves as the U.K.’s drug cost assessor, determining whether a new drug’s price-to-benefit ratio merits coverage via the publicly-funded NHS. The agency's seal of approval for Onswik means hundreds of thousands of patients with type 2 diabetes could eventually make the switch to a weekly injection and reduce their annual injections by 85%, should Lilly's long-acting option score approval in the country.
The Onswik option could be particularly valuable to patients who need assistance with their insulin injection because of factors like sight loss, frailty, limited hand movement or difficulty following the necessary steps, according to final draft guidance from NICE issued early Thursday U.K. time.
Switching to weekly injections also could reduce those patients' dependence on caregivers and healthcare workers and offer more flexibility in their day-to-day lives, the drug value appraiser added.
