Taiwan renews healthcare innovation partnership with UK agency

The National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) and the Center for Drug Evaluation on Monday renewed their partnership agreement virtually with the British National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

NHIA Director-General Chen Lian-Yu (陳亮妤) signed the two-year agreement in Taipei, witnessed by Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良), while NICE Advice Director Brad Groves signed it in the UK.

The collaboration with NICE, one of the world’s leading health technology assessment (HTA) organizations, would further enhance the integration of HTA, reimbursement systems and healthcare digitalization in Taiwan, Chen said.

Photo courtesy of the National Health Insurance Administration

HTA is a process used to evaluate the properties and effects of new medical technologies, helping policymakers to determine insurance coverage and patient costs.

The partnership agreement was first signed in 2023.

Under the updated deal, the two sides would focus on innovative healthcare assessment frameworks, digital transformation and HTA talent development, the NHIA said in a statement yesterday.

In terms of the assessment frameworks, the partnership would improve HTA and reimbursement systems for high-cost emerging technologies, such as gene and cell therapies, the NHIA said.

Next, on digital transformation, the two sides would share experiences in digital governance for cancer care, the agency said.

That includes discussing the promotion of fast healthcare interoperability resources, an international standard for healthcare data exchanges, it said.

Such discussions could advance digital transformation in healthcare data, streamline prior authorization processes, and establish real-world evaluation systems for cancer treatment outcomes, it said.

In the third area of cooperation, the partnership would cultivate more HTA talent through training programs, expert exchanges and information-sharing networks, the NHIA said.

The partnership would also work on improving policymaking by incorporating healthcare, long-term care, and social care needs into the policy evaluation process and integrating related resources, the NHIA said.

The alliance has already produced benefits for Taiwan, the agency said.

Inspired by the UK’s Cancer Drugs Fund, it has introduced a provisional payment system aimed at expanding patient access to new therapies while maintaining the sustainability of the National Health Insurance system, the NHIA added.