HTA must consider health equity for progress

ICER has released a White Paper on Health Equity. This paper measures the impact of health technology assessment (HTA) on equity, and suggests approaches to leverage HTA to advance health equity for racial, ethnic, and socially disadvantaged groups.

When decision-makers evaluate data to inform pricing and insurance coverage, they must consider the implications for health equity. They have taken a close look at every step of our work to assess if we and other HTA groups can make improvements and will enhance the discussion on clinical trial diversity.

It is essential for HTA bodies to be aware of how to add equity into the methods of health technology assessment, and if that can be accomplished by utilizing innovative methods that are expansions of traditional cost-effectiveness analyses, through evidence-grounded deliberative approaches, or a combination of the two.