Does the pharma industry have a value problem?

Public debate about medicines in the UK is often reduced to a single question: how much do they cost? While price matters, this narrow framing misses the real issue – and makes better decisions harder.

At a recent ZPB Associates Re‑framing the Pharma ‘Value’ Narrative Roundtable, bringing together journalists, academics, patient advocates and industry leaders, there was broad agreement on one point. The central challenge facing pharma is not pricing pressure alone, but a systemic failure to define, evidence and demonstrate value in ways that are meaningful to people. That gap shapes media narratives, reinforces mistrust and obscures where genuine public benefit is being delivered or lost.

When outcomes are replaced by proxies

Historically, NHS debates were driven by outcomes: mortality, avoidable harm, quality of care. Today, those conversations are increasingly displaced by proxies such as waiting lists, activity levels and budgets.

In medicines policy, this has translated into an overwhelming focus on price, often detached from whether treatments help people live longer, healthier or more independent lives. In a system under acute financial strain, that shift is understandable. But it is also limiting. When value is framed primarily as cost containment, medicines spending is positioned as a trade‑off rather than a contributor to wider system benefit.

Why the narrative struggles to shift

From a media perspective, this dynamic is reinforced by the way government and industry engage publicly. Statements, briefings and lobbying frequently speak past one another, while global economic pressures complicate domestic debates. Conflict is easy to report; nuance is not.

Journalists consistently say they are not looking for promotional messaging. They want credible stories from patients and HCPs – real examples of impact, supported by data that shows those experiences reflect wider patterns. Evidence rooted in lived experience, connected to system‑level outcomes, has far more traction.

Defining value more clearly

From an evaluation standpoint, value is outcomes achieved per cost – but outcomes must be defined broadly. Clinical effectiveness matters, as does patient experience. In a publicly funded system, value also includes long‑term health, ability to work, independence and system outcomes such as workforce capacity and pathway flow.

ZPB works with pharma and healthcare organisations to move the value conversation beyond price. We help identify and real outcomes that matter to patients, the NHS and the public; translate complex data into credible narratives; and engage media, policymakers and communities with insight rather than assertion.

To find out more about how ZPB can support your organisation, please contact: rita.martins@zpb-associates.com.