Why the NHS remains the world's most challenging – and rewarding – healthcare market for life sciences
For pharmaceutical, biotech, and medtech companies eyeing global expansion, the NHS presents a paradox. It is one of the UK's most treasured institutions, providing universal healthcare to millions and widely regarded as a symbol of high-quality care internationally. Yet, concerns about profiteering and privatisation, bureaucratic complexity and fragmented procurement pathways have hindered the ability to capitalise on these opportunities.
The commercial reality is stark: with more than 1,400 procurement frameworks managed by NHS trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs), the system is highly fragmented, making it difficult to identify clear and consistent pathways for engaging with the NHS. For life sciences businesses, particularly SMEs and international companies, the system often appears overly complicated, resource-intensive, and uncertain.
But the landscape is shifting. The NHS 10 Year Plan and 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy commit to evolving infrastructure finance models and encourage the use of private sector capacity to support service delivery in areas of high need.
These national strategies emphasise the importance of attracting international investment in medical research, digital health, and innovation-led care models. Such a drive must safeguard public benefit by establishing structured frameworks that channel investment into the right areas. A recent white paper of ours, in partnership with global healthcare consultancy Healthcare World, titled Advancing Inward Investment into the UK Health Sector, offers practical recommendations to reshape how pharmaceutical, biotech, and medtech companies access this critical market.
Indeed, creating a ‘smart investment strategy’ offers wide-ranging benefits – healthcare providers can innovate, patients receive better care, the taxpayer burden eases, and suppliers receive access to one of the world’s biggest state-based healthcare systems to test and roll out new technologies and treatments.
A roadmap for market access
Current NHS structures consist of 232 trusts, 42 integrated care boards, and numerous other organisations, each managing procurement at a local level, leading to significant duplication of effort and creating barriers for investors.
For life sciences businesses, this fragmentation has real commercial consequences – a successful pilot programme with one trust doesn't guarantee scalability across the system.
Below are key steps the government could take to support inward investment in UK healthcare.
Creating an 'NHS front door'
Establish a comprehensive centralised repository of information to guide overseas suppliers on NHS procurement and contracting, alongside developing a unified 'NHS front door' for investment to act as a single, centralised entry point for foreign investors. This would streamline processes, improve co-ordination, and enhance the UK's appeal as a global healthcare investment hub.
There are examples of effective local initiatives to build upon, including Propel@YH, a digital health accelerator in Yorkshire and Humber supporting SMEs and international companies with mentorship and resources to develop NHS-focused solutions.
Building commercial sophistication
Develop a dedicated central business development unit within the NHS to consistently manage trade and investment conversations, and bridge knowledge gaps in international commercial operations. This matters for life sciences businesses because it creates a professional counterpart who understands commercial imperatives, not just clinical needs.
Post-Brexit regulatory opportunity
Enhance regulatory agility to attract medtech and digital health innovation. While the UK's departure from the EU has reduced its attractiveness as a strategic gateway to Europe, leveraging post-Brexit regulatory freedoms could streamline approval pathways for innovative technologies.
The UK’s Life Sciences Sector Plan proposes interventions including establishing AI regulations with a flexible approach, and agreement with the EU and other jurisdictions on reciprocity of authorisation approvals.
Building trust through structured frameworks
Establish a structured framework for international investment to ensure private sector investment delivers tangible public benefits. Initiatives such as the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG), which channels profits from medicine sales back into the NHS, provide a model for structuring agreements that balance profitability with public benefit while addressing the political sensitivity around private sector involvement in the NHS.
Procurement simplification to unlock scale
Simplify NHS procurement processes between NHS organisations to attract and streamline investor engagement. Standardising processes across trusts and ICBs would enhance accessibility for investors, eliminate inefficiencies, and expedite decision-making, enabling more strategic partnerships and sustainable investment models. This is perhaps the most commercially significant recommendation for life sciences businesses seeking to scale beyond pilot programmes.
The data opportunity: NHS assets as competitive advantage
Align inward investment with a UK health data strategy to unlock the value of NHS data assets. Medtech, digital health, and health data represent lower-risk and high-growth opportunities closely aligned with global healthcare trends. The NHS must address regulatory and legal barriers to cross-border data sharing, establishing secure, ethical, and transparent frameworks for data exchange to enhance appeal to global investors while allowing the NHS to benefit from technologies that can move the dial on treating health problems such as cancer and long-term neurological diseases.
For pharmaceutical companies investing in real-world evidence, genomics research, or AI-driven drug discovery, this represents transformational potential.
What this means for life sciences market entry strategy
For life sciences businesses, the key takeaway is this: success requires understanding that market access isn't purely a regulatory or commercial challenge – it's a strategic exercise in aligning private sector capabilities with public healthcare imperatives, building trust through transparent frameworks, and demonstrating tangible patient benefit.
About the author
Carly Caton is a specialist commercial healthcare lawyer at UK and Ireland law firm Browne Jacobson. She advises all types of healthcare and life sciences organisations across the sector (NHS, independent sector, social care, life sciences, voluntary sector, primary care, and suppliers to the market) on commercial matters, contracts, transactions, and partnering arrangements. Caton also supports her clients with international expansion and partnering, as well as new entrants to the UK health and life sciences market.
