EU supports joint project COMED

9 October 2017, by Andrea Bükow

Within the context of the EU-joint project COMED (Pushing the boundaries of Cost and Outcome analysis of Medical Technologies), six universities collectively develop new scientific methods for health economics. How to measure the effect of innovations in healthcare markets will be examined and tested under Prof. Jonas Schreyögg’s stewardship, scientific director of the HCHE.

The entire project will be supported within the context of the framework research programme by the European Commission (Horizon 2020), from January 2018 to December 2020. The syndicate consists of universities from Milan, Rotterdam, Exeter, Bern, Budapest and Hamburg. The project as a whole comprises the following issues:

First, the methodology of economic evaluation regarding innovations in healthcare markets shall be further developed, exemplified by medical technology. Economic evaluation is used for assessing the substance of innovations, meaning their cost-benefit ratio. Most of the highly developed healthcare systems demand these evaluations to assess the reimbursement of a product. Especially benefit-ratio is highly demanding on a methodological level, but no international standard is existing so far. Therefore, this standard shall be developed in this joint project amongst other things.

Second, the project deals with measuring effects of the use of these innovations after their market launch. Using these innovations leads to a vast variance regarding the costs and quality of results within and between European states. A part of this variance is intended (warranted), for example by learning curve effects. A different part of this variance is unintended (unwarranted), for example by improper handling. This project is supposed to develop an analytical model showing how intended variance is differentiated from unintended variance. Then, the model shall be tested on the basis of data provided by the participating countries.