Next Economic Analysis Seminar Series

El próximo lunes 28 de abril tendremos un seminario impartido por Patricia Cubí (Office of Health Economics). El seminario tendrá lugar a las 12:00 en la Sala de Juntas 1 del Edificio 2.

Title: "From Discount Rates to Patient Voices: Exploring Methodological Evolution in Health Technology Assessment Globally"

Coautores: Gayathri Kumar, Priscila Radu, Patricia Cubi-Molla, Martina Garau, Eleanor Bell, Jia Pan, Ramiro Gilardino, Julie Van Bavel, Agnes Brandtmüller, Katherine Nelson and Melinda Goodall

Resumen:  Health Technology Assessment (HTA) plays a critical role in informing decisions about the adoption and reimbursement of health technologies across health systems. However, significant cross-country variation exists in HTA methods and processes (M&P), with implications for equity, efficiency, and patient access to innovation. This research combines findings from two complementary projects exploring how HTA agencies differ in their methodological approaches and what drives reforms in HTA practice globally. First, we investigated the positioning of 14 HTA agencies across Europe, North America, and Asia-Pacific on five key methodological domains: discount rates, modifiers (e.g. disease severity), patient involvement, real-world evidence (RWE), and surrogate endpoints. While general trends indicate increasing openness to patient engagement, greater use of RWE, and more explicit methodological guidance, substantial heterogeneity remains. This lack of harmonisation can create inefficiencies in evidence generation and lead to inconsistent patient access to new treatments. Second, we examined how reforms in HTA M&P occur over time and what drives them. Through literature review and 29 expert interviews, we identified three main reform drivers: (i) country-specific political, legal, and health policy environments; (ii) international HTA practices; and (iii) internal assessment challenges. Mapping these dynamics revealed that some agencies—notably PBAC (Australia), NICE (England), IQWiG (Germany), and ZIN (Netherlands)—act as reform catalysts through proactive updates and international influence. Together, these studies highlight the increasing adaptability of HTA agencies and the potential for international collaboration to drive convergence in methods. For economists, these findings underscore how institutional design and policy diffusion shape healthcare decision-making, with implications for value-for-money, access, and innovation across jurisdictions.