ISPOR publishes key insights from first global HTA roundtable on emerging health technology challenges

ISPOR has released a summary of its inaugural global health technology assessment (HTA) roundtable, highlighting the need for greater international collaboration to address shared challenges in evaluating advanced therapies, digital health, and high-cost technologies.

ISPOR–The Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) has published insights from its first Global HTA Roundtable in the March/April issue of Value & Outcomes Spotlight. The summary report, titled, “The Importance of Global Collaboration and Knowledge Exchange: A Summary Report of the Global ISPOR HTA Roundtable,” captures key themes and findings from the October 2024 virtual event, which brought together 100 HTA professionals from 53 countries.

This was the first time ISPOR convened HTA professionals from all five of its regional roundtables: Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and Africa, and North America; for a single global discussion. Participants focused on three critical areas:

1. Advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) and gene therapies
2. Improving access to therapies under budget constraints
3. Digital health technologies, including AI

According to the summary, participants agreed on the urgent need for greater collaboration, transparency, and data sharing to support HTA systems worldwide in adapting to evolving technologies. As noted in the report,

“There is a strong call for better collaboration between HTA bodies and payers to ensure price transparency and for the development of global frameworks tailored to assessing ATMPs."

The discussion on ATMPs and gene therapies highlighted several challenges, including high upfront costs, uncertainty around long-term outcomes, and limited access particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Participants discussed potential strategies to address these issues, such as outcomes-based contracts, on-site CAR-T manufacturing, and joint price negotiations through initiatives like BeNeLuxA.

“ISPOR is committed to supporting events like the Global HTA Roundtable to foster collaboration, consensus, and the evolution of HTA methodologies,” said ISPOR CEO and Executive Director, Rob Abbott. “ISPOR’s Global HTA Roundtable ties directly to two objectives in the Society’s new Strategic Plan 2030, including proactively horizon scanning to establish high-leverage health policy opportunities that the Society can contribute toward. It also engages broadly with stakeholders to increase the visibility and influence of health economics and outcomes research, which is vital to HTA.”

Digital health and AI were identified as rapidly evolving fields that pose new challenges for HTA, particularly due to the dynamic nature of AI systems, data quality concerns, and the lack of standardized assessment frameworks. The need for consistent evaluation guidelines and better information exchange was a key takeaway. As the report stated,

“The biggest opportunity for improving how the HTA community assesses digital health and AI is the need for standardization of guidelines and methods relating to these types of technologies, including more information sharing of best practices and current guidelines.”

Another area of focus was high-cost technologies, especially those targeting rare diseases. Examples shared at the Roundtable included Canada’s “Drugs for Rare Diseases Strategy,” Ukraine’s successful use of Managed Entry Agreements (MEAs), and Argentina’s HTA prioritization framework that leverages international evaluations.

“There is a lot of opportunity for the global HTA community to discuss further,” said Kelly Lenahan, Director, Global HTA Initiatives at ISPOR. “We learned that many HTA bodies globally have the same challenges half a world away despite their different healthcare systems, levels of HTA development, and socioeconomic status.”