Who Speaks For Europe? A Country-Level Analysis Of Representation And Expertise In EU Health Technology Assessment Joint Bodies
Author(s)
Roua ABBES, Engineer1, Anna Kapusniak, MSc2, Aleksandra Caban, PharmD2, Mondher Toumi, MD, MSc, PhD3.
1Clever-Access, Tunis, Tunisia, 2Clever-Access, Cracow, Poland, 3InovIntell, Paris, France.
1Clever-Access, Tunis, Tunisia, 2Clever-Access, Cracow, Poland, 3InovIntell, Paris, France.
OBJECTIVES: This study aims to analyse the number and the expertise of representatives nominated by each of the 29 European Economic Area Member States (MSs) to the Joint Clinical Assessment (JCA) and Joint Scientific Consultation (JSC) subgroups.
METHODS: We reviewed available attendance lists from the JCA and JSC subgroup meetings in February, March, and April 2025 published by the European Commission to retrieve all participants. We then gathered participants for both subgroups separately and extracted available data on their background and HTA expertise from LinkedIn profiles, or official agency websites, enabling cross-country comparison of expert profiles per subgroup.
RESULTS: Key findings revealed imbalanced numbers of representatives among MSs with Germany (JCA: 12; JSC: 9), France (JCA: 6; JSC: 4), Italy (JCA: 5; JSC: 4), Spain (JCA: 5; JSC:4) and Sweden (JCA: 7; JSC: 1) dominating while Iceland, Liechtenstein, Malta and Romania not being represented in the JSC or both subgroups at all. Majority of JCA and JSC representatives are women (80% and 78%, respectively), have a doctoral degree (62% and 60%, respectively) and >10 years of work experience (70% and 65%, respectively), however their experience in HTA is shorter (72% and 68%, respectively with ≤10 years). The professional backgrounds of representatives of the JCA and JSC subgroups are mainly: Public Health/Health policy/Statistics/Pharmacovigilance (44% and 31%, respectively), and Medicine/Pharmacy (43% and 46%, respectively) with less representation in Biology/Biochemistry (7% and 19%, respectively) and Health Economics (6% and 31%, respectively). Among representatives of JCA and JSC subgroups, 17% and 12%, respectively hold positions as heads or deputies in their organisations.
CONCLUSIONS: EU HTA joint bodies show significant disparities in country representation with largest and richest MSs with mature HTA dominating both JCA and JSC subgroup. Despite most members having long professional experience, the relatively limited HTA-specific expertise raises questions about the quality of joint assessment outputs.
METHODS: We reviewed available attendance lists from the JCA and JSC subgroup meetings in February, March, and April 2025 published by the European Commission to retrieve all participants. We then gathered participants for both subgroups separately and extracted available data on their background and HTA expertise from LinkedIn profiles, or official agency websites, enabling cross-country comparison of expert profiles per subgroup.
RESULTS: Key findings revealed imbalanced numbers of representatives among MSs with Germany (JCA: 12; JSC: 9), France (JCA: 6; JSC: 4), Italy (JCA: 5; JSC: 4), Spain (JCA: 5; JSC:4) and Sweden (JCA: 7; JSC: 1) dominating while Iceland, Liechtenstein, Malta and Romania not being represented in the JSC or both subgroups at all. Majority of JCA and JSC representatives are women (80% and 78%, respectively), have a doctoral degree (62% and 60%, respectively) and >10 years of work experience (70% and 65%, respectively), however their experience in HTA is shorter (72% and 68%, respectively with ≤10 years). The professional backgrounds of representatives of the JCA and JSC subgroups are mainly: Public Health/Health policy/Statistics/Pharmacovigilance (44% and 31%, respectively), and Medicine/Pharmacy (43% and 46%, respectively) with less representation in Biology/Biochemistry (7% and 19%, respectively) and Health Economics (6% and 31%, respectively). Among representatives of JCA and JSC subgroups, 17% and 12%, respectively hold positions as heads or deputies in their organisations.
CONCLUSIONS: EU HTA joint bodies show significant disparities in country representation with largest and richest MSs with mature HTA dominating both JCA and JSC subgroup. Despite most members having long professional experience, the relatively limited HTA-specific expertise raises questions about the quality of joint assessment outputs.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-11, ISPOR Europe 2025, Glasgow, Scotland
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S2
Code
HTA369
Topic
Health Policy & Regulatory, Health Technology Assessment, Organizational Practices
Topic Subcategory
Decision & Deliberative Processes, Systems & Structure, Value Frameworks & Dossier Format
Disease
No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas