EAHP response to the proposal for a Regulation on HTA

• EAHP welcomes the Commission’s efforts to strengthen the cooperation between Member States in the field of HTA.
• EAHP urges the Council and the Parliament to enhance the involvement of stakeholders.
• In particular the role of healthcare professionals, including hospital pharmacists, should be strengthened to ensure that their extensive experience and knowledge in medicine use is utilised in HTA processes. 

The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) fully supports the European Commission’s efforts to strengthen the cooperation between Member States in the field of health technology assessments (HTA) by means of the adoption of a Regulation.

As healthcare professionals, hospital pharmacists have the ethical duty to ensure that patients are provided with access to the most appropriate treatment, and especially to the medicines and medical devices essential for improving their health. As the results of Health Technology Assessments can have a significant effect in terms of availability and access to medicines and medical devices, EAHP is an interested party in the discussions on the proposed Regulation.

Previous initiatives that foster cooperation in the field of HTA such as the European Network for Health Technology Assessment (EUnetHTA) brought significant benefits through sharing best practices developed by individual Member States. Their achievements include reducing duplication of work, supporting less experienced countries and assisting with addressing health inequalities between countries, therefore ensuring equal access for patients. However, the requirement for healthcare professional input was low.

To enhance the involvement of stakeholders, EAHP welcomes the creation of a Stakeholder Network, as outlined in Article 26 of the Proposal. The role of this network and the involvement of healthcare professionals, such as hospital pharmacists, should be strengthened. Only the direct involvement of healthcare professionals, including hospital pharmacists, will ensure that their extensive experience and knowledge in medicine use is utilised in HTA processes.

Additionally, EAHP encourages the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament to ensure transparency of the process for all stakeholders.