DOH OIC Maria Rosario Vergeire and DOST Secretary Renato Solidum headed the turnover ceremony on Monday, March 6, 2023, at the PICC in Manila. (Photo from the Facebook page of the DOH)
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) transferred the operations of the Health Technology Assessment Council (HTAC) to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) at a turnover ceremony held on Monday at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila.
According to the DOH, HTAC is an independent advisory body providing guidance to the DOH and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) on the technologies to be funded by the government.
The transfer was made in compliance with the Universal Health Care Act, which mandates the transfer of the HTAC as an attached agency to the DOST within 5 years after its establishment.
“With their transfer to the DOST, the HTA Research Network will be established, which will further strengthen the HTA capacity for the country by partnering with external entities who will help develop and implement training programs and will conduct HTAs,” the DOH said.
“In the long run, the HTA Philippines envisions performing early HTA, which advances the conduct of assessments of health technologies at the early stages of clinical research and can guide the innovation development process,” it added.
DOST Secretary Renato Solidum expressed the department’s commitment to strengthening the implementation of the HTA process through research, capacity building, and partnerships.
Both departments vowed to continue to work together on their mandates, capacity building, and overall continuity of the current efforts with the leadership of HTAC chair Dr. Marita Reyes and HTA Division chief Anne Julienne Genuino-Marfori.