Covid-19: NICE rejects five treatments over uncertain evidence and price in draft guidance

NICE has recommended three drugs—nirmatrelvir plus ritonavir (Paxlovid), tocilizumab (RoActemra), and baricitinib (Olumiant)—for the treatment of covid-19 in adults, as part of draft guidance.1

The review of the efficacy and cost effectiveness of drugs currently being used in the NHS to treat covid-19 considered treatments in the context of routine commissioning, rather than their use in exceptional circumstances, such as during a pandemic.

NICE has not recommended other covid-19 treatments, including casirivimab plus imdevimab (Ronapreve), molnupiravir (Lagevrio), remdesivir (Veklury), sotrovimab (Xevudy), and tixagevimab plus cilgavimab (Evusheld).

Currently, access to covid-19 drugs is guided by the UK wide clinical access policies agreed by the UK chief medical officers. Once the final NICE guidance is published, however, it will inform …