Health Technology Wales and NICE sign a new agreement

A new agreement, Memorandum of Understanding, has been signed by Health Technology Wales (HTW) and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) which aims to enhance the collaboration on planning and sharing of information – in England and Wales – over the assessment of med-tech.

Currently, health technology evaluations, on medical devices, are carried out by HTW and NICE to determine their cost, cost-effectiveness and safety; the new agreement will strengthen co-operation between assessors in Wales and England.

Professor Peter Groves, HTW’s Chair, stated: “We’re delighted to formalise our relationship with NICE. Our role in promoting the use of medical technologies that offer the most benefit for the people of Wales is shared by NICE. It’s time that we collaborate to share resources and knowledge so that we can ensure the best possible outcomes from the work of both organisations in improving the health of people in Wales.”

Director of the centre for health technology evaluation, NICE, Meindert Boysen, stated: “NICE welcomes this agreement with Health Technology Wales which aims to improve the way both organisations collaborate and communicate in the important area of medical technologies.”