OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to approximate and compare the delays occurring during the different steps of the economic evaluation conducted by the French Commission for Economic and Public Health Evaluation (CEESP) between 2021 and 2022.

METHODS: Date of eligibility decisions for economic evaluation, CEESP sessions, and online publication of the appraisal were collected from the French Health Authority (HAS) website for the 2022 submitted dossier with published appraisal. The dates of an intermediate step, the economic technical groups, are also collected. Delays between submission (approximated by eligibility decision) and the different steps of the assessment have then been calculated and compared with those for 2021.

RESULTS: The average delays from eligibility decision to online appraisal publication were 215.6 days (SD=39.7) (n=25). The average delay from eligibility decision to the first CEESP passage was 116.5 days (SD=34), indicating a decreasing trend compared to 2021 (mean=136.4 days, SD=59.3). The average duration between eligibility decision and technical group review was 100.7 days (SD=33.4) for 24 cases (one dossier not examined). These delays were comparable to 2021 (mean=115.8 days, SD=56.6). For 48% (n=12) of the cases, an oral hearing led to a second CEESP passage within 14 to 63 days (mean=33.9, SD=19). Delays between the last CEESP passage (appraisal adoption) and online publication averaged 82.5 days (SD=24.2).

CONCLUSIONS: This analysis highlights the average duration of each stage in the medico-economic evaluation process by the French National Authority. It takes around 215.6 days on average from eligibility decision to online publication. The findings reveal a decreasing trend in the average delay to the first CEESP passage. These results emphasize the importance of proactive planning by pharmaceutical companies to anticipate potential delays when bringing healthcare products to market.