Lessa Fernanda, Caccavo Francisco, Curtis Stephanie, Ouimet-Rathé Stéphanie, Lemgruber Alexandre
Medicines and Health Technologies Unit Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Washington, D.C. United States of America Medicines and Health Technologies Unit, Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization, Washington, D.C., United States of America.
Rev Panam Salud Publica. 2017 Dec 26;41:e165. doi: 10.26633/RPSP.2017.165. eCollection 2017.
Health technology assessment (HTA) has been adopted by countries in order to improve allocative efficiency in their health systems. This study aimed to describe and analyze the HTA decision-making process in the Region of the Americas.
A literature review was done to better understand the HTA situation in the Region. Also, in 2014 and 2015, individuals responsible for conducting HTA in countries of the Americas were identified and received a questionnaire on HTA and the decision-making process.
A total of 46 questionnaire responses were obtained, from 30 countries. The respondents were similar in terms of their institutions, main funding sources, and technology types assessed. Of the 46 respondents, 23 (50%) work for their respective ministry of health. Also, 36 (78%) undertake and/or coordinate HTA through coverage and reimbursement/pricing decisions and other HTA-related activities, while 24 (52%) use HTA for emerging technologies. While some countries in the Region have created formal HTA units, there is a weak link between the HTA process and decision-making. Most of the countries with recognized HTA institutions are members of the Health Technology Assessment Network of the Americas (RedETSA). Despite the advances in the Region overall, most countries in Central America and the Caribbean are still at the early stages of implementing HTA to support decision-making.
Many countries in the Americas have benefited from the exchange and capacity-building opportunities within RedETSA. However, there are still many challenges to overcome in the Region in terms of the discussion and creation of HTA-related policies.
各国已采用卫生技术评估（HTA）以提高其卫生系统的资源配置效率。本研究旨在描述和分析美洲地区的HTA决策过程。
进行文献综述以更好地了解该地区的HTA情况。此外，在2014年和2015年，确定了美洲国家负责开展HTA的人员，并向他们发放了一份关于HTA及决策过程的问卷。
共收到来自30个国家的46份问卷回复。受访者在其机构、主要资金来源和评估的技术类型方面相似。在46名受访者中，23人（50%）在各自国家的卫生部工作。此外，36人（78%）通过覆盖范围和报销/定价决策以及其他与HTA相关的活动来开展和/或协调HTA，而24人（52%）将HTA用于新兴技术。虽然该地区一些国家已设立了正式的HTA单位，但HTA过程与决策之间的联系薄弱。大多数拥有公认HTA机构的国家是美洲卫生技术评估网络（RedETSA）的成员。尽管该地区总体上取得了进展，但中美洲和加勒比地区的大多数国家仍处于实施HTA以支持决策的早期阶段。
美洲许多国家受益于RedETSA内部的交流和能力建设机会。然而，在该地区，在讨论和制定与HTA相关的政策方面仍有许多挑战需要克服。
