The<unk>  or NICE  is a Special Health Authority of the National Health Service in  England and Wales. It was set up as the "National<unk>  for<unk><unk> " in 1999, and on 1 April 2005 joined with the Health Development Agency to become the new<unk> " (still abbreviated as NICE).
NICE publishes<unk>  appraisals of whether particular treatments should be considered worthwhile by the NHS. These appraisals are based primarily on cost-effectiveness.
NICE was established in an attempt to defuse the so-called postcode lottery system of healthcare in England and Wales, where treatments that were available depended upon the NHS Trust area in which the patient happened to live. However its role in rationing treatment has led to NICE becoming a very controversial body.
The Scottish equivalent (formed earlier in 1993) is SIGN: the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network. NICE and SIGN often work together, to avoid duplicating guidelines.
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence
Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland
National Center for Health Statistics
The Cancer Council Queensland
American Health Care Association
The Cancer Council Australia
Infectious Disease Project Editing FAQ
BC Cancer Agency