RETHINKING STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY ACCESS IN HEALTH TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT: REACTIONS TO POLICY FORUM DISCUSSIONS.

The need to progress and innovate in health technology assessment (HTA) is a must in a continuously changing environment. The HTAi Policy Forum reflected on two specific areas for development where it was thought there was need for careful consideration and deliberation during the main annual meeting in February 2016. The study by Husereau et al. (1) in this journal presents the discussions resulting from this Forum. To further share the deliberations of the Forum and with a view to opening this debate to the wider HTA community, a panel session during the HTAi Annual Meeting in Tokyo was organized. Presentations at the panel included a summary of the HTAi Policy Forum discussions and perspectives from a patient, a representative of healthcare system provider, and a representative from an HTA organization and industry. This letter presents the issues raised in the panel session.