Abstract
There is no health system that has the resources to evaluate all technologies. The presence of a clear process to prioritize health technologies for assessment by health technology assessment (HTA) agencies is a good practice principle recognized at the international level. The objective of Health Technology Assessment International's 2020 Latin American Policy Forum (LatamPF) was to explore how to improve the way HTA agencies in Latin America identify and prioritize technologies for assessment. This paper is based on a background document, a survey, and the deliberations of the members of the LatamPF (forty-six participants from eleven countries) using a design thinking methodology. Participants agreed that a lack of clear prioritization mechanisms results in HTA processes and decisions that are perceived to be of low transparency and overly exposed to political or interest group pressures. The LatamPF identified barriers and recommended actions to improve HTA prioritization mechanisms in Latin America. The criteria identified as the most important to be taken into consideration by HTA agencies in the region when prioritizing a technology for assessment were: the burden of illness, the potential clinical benefit, the alignment with national health priorities, the potential impact on equity, a lack of treatment alternatives for patients, and the potential economic impact. Forum participants agreed that the establishment of transparent prioritization processes is a key element for all health systems. Improvements in these processes will strengthen HTA and provide greater legitimacy to decision making.
Highlights
Health technology assessment (HTA) is a multidisciplinary process that uses explicit methods to determine the value of a health technology at different points in its life cycle [1]
There are some common aspects in the prioritization processes developed over time by HTA agencies around the globe, no two countries, agencies, or health systems do this in the same way, and the same criteria are not used in all cases
This paper presents the results of the fifth Latin American Policy Forum (2020)
Summary
Health technology assessment (HTA) is a multidisciplinary process that uses explicit methods to determine the value of a health technology at different points in its life cycle [1]. This is true for low- and middle-income countries where the resources to conduct HTAs are scarcer In such contexts, the selection of technologies to be assessed and considered for coverage and/or inclusion in the benefits package can cause serious distortions in resource use decision making if there are no clear and explicit mechanisms to guide the prioritization process [7]. It is necessary to ensure the efficient and cost-effective use of resources dedicated to the assessment, which means asking if the assessment has the potential to offer the greatest benefit in relation to the cost implicated in the assessment itself [6;7] For these reasons, the need to establish priorities for which technologies to be assessed is neither a new nor minor issue for the HTA community. There are some common aspects in the prioritization processes developed over time by HTA agencies around the globe, no two countries, agencies, or health systems do this in the same way, and the same criteria are not used in all cases
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
