Priority setting for health in emerging markets

Area of Science:

• Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR)
• Health Policy and Systems Research
• Evidence-Based Practice

Background:

• Emerging economies are increasing health spending as GDP grows.
• Health technology assessment (HTA) research is vital for efficient resource allocation.
• Comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness research can optimize health outcomes within budget constraints.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review country institutions for health technology assessment (HTA) in emerging economies.
• To assess the extent to which research informs health spending priorities globally.
• To identify gaps and opportunities for improving evidence-based policymaking in health.

Main Methods:

• Review of country-level institutions and initiatives for health technology assessment.
• Analysis of the integration of research evidence (comparative effectiveness, cost-effectiveness) into health priority setting.
• Examination of the completeness and country-specificity of evidence-based policy efforts.

Main Results:

• Efforts to use research for health priorities are widespread, extending beyond high-income nations.
• Many countries have incomplete systems for evidence-based policymaking in health.
• Significant gaps exist in the incorporation of data into priority-setting processes.

Conclusions:

• Health technology assessment (HTA) is a growing tool in emerging economies for informed health spending.
• Further country-specific research is necessary to address existing gaps in evidence-based health policy.
• There is substantial scope to improve data incorporation through enhanced priority-setting frameworks.