To advance APEC economies towards universal health coverage and foster a sustainable ecosystem with innovative healthcare services, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) will host the "APEC Workshop on Advancing Health Technology Assessment for Sustainable Universal Health Coverage" on September 3, 2024, in Taipei. The workshop will feature experts and representatives from 13 APEC economies, including Chinese Taipei, as well as an expert from the UK's NICE who will deliver a keynote speech. Additionally, officials from the Ministry of Health of Belize, one of our Caribbean allies, will participate. The workshop aims to explore how health technology assessment shapes and improves healthcare systems and examines its future prospects.
Dr. Tai-Yuan Chiu, the Minister of Health and Welfare, highlights that health technology assessment is essential for determining whether new drugs, medical devices, and innovative healthcare services can genuinely improve the health and well-being of the population. In 2023, the NHIA signed a cooperation agreement on health technology assessment with the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), significantly advancing our capabilities in this area. The Center for Health Policy and Technology Assessment (CHPTA) also officially commenced operations on January 1, 2024. This center not only accelerates the process of including new drugs in the National Health Insurance but also serves as a vital link for exchanges with international health technology assessment organizations, laying a solid foundation for the development of health technology assessment. Director-General Jonathan C.Y. Sun of the Department of International Organizations under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs echoes Minister Chiu's views, emphasizing that we will actively strengthen our partnerships with other economies and deepen our role in international engagement.
The workshop will cover three major themes: "Towards Universal Health Coverage: The Vital Role of HTA," "The Impact Stories of HTA," and "Advancing HTA: Navigating Challenges, Building Opportunities, and Fostering Collaboration." In addition to representatives from Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Peru, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam, the NHIA has also invited an expert from the UK's NICE to deliver a speech, and officials from the Ministry of Health of Belize to share practical experiences and challenges in health technology assessment.
Director-General of the NHIA, Dr. Shih Chung-liang, points out that accelerating the assessment of healthcare technologies and considering their inclusion in NHI coverage are among the key challenges the NHIA currently faces. The NHIA has already implemented several NHI pharmaceutical policy reforms, including establishing a designated fund for provisional listing, expanding the budget for new drugs and health technologies, and promoting parallel review mechanisms. Director-General Shih further notes that, in addition to facilitating exchanges with APEC economy representatives, this workshop is also an opportunity to enhance our health technology assessment capabilities and drive the development of our healthcare industry.
Additionally, on September 4, the NHIA will arrange visits for APEC economy officials to the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) and Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital to gain a deeper understanding of our achievements in applying health technology assessment.
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▲Figure 1: The Minister of Health and Welfare Tai-Yuan Chiu delivered opening remarks at the "APEC Workshop on Advancing Health Technology Assessment and Sustainable Universal Health Coverage".
▲Figure 2: The Director General Chung-Liang Shih of the National Health Insurance Administration shared that Health Technology Assessment (HTA) plays an important role in National Health Insurance.
▲Figure 3: "APEC Workshop on Advancing Health Technology Assessment and Sustainable Universal Health Coverage" Group photo: Minister Tai-Yuan Chiu (5th from the right), Deputy Minister Jih-Haw Chou (4th from the right), Director General Chung-Liang Shih (4th from the left), the Director General of the Department of International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jonathan C.Y. Sun (3rd from the right), and representatives from 12 APEC economies.
▲Figure 4: "APEC Workshop on Advancing Health Technology Assessment and Sustainable Universal Health Coverage" Group photo of all attendees.