Purpose

The purpose of the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment is to provide a forum for the identification and pursuit of interests common to health technology assessment agencies.

By-Laws

Conditions of Membership

1.1

Agencies that were represented at the 27 September 1993 Paris meeting who agreed to establish INAHTA, and that contributed financially to its operation from 1 October 1993 to 30 September 1994 shall be deemed to have "grand-fathered" the Network, and as such shall be founding members.

1.2

Applicants must meet the membership criteria as listed in Appendix A to the By-laws.

1.3

There will be an annual membership fee, which currently is 2700€ and will be determined at each Annual Meeting for the following year. A fee for the first year of the membership is 1350€. This fee must be paid within six months of acceptance as a Member, and in subsequent fiscal years, within 90 days of the beginning of the fiscal year, which begins on January 1st.

1.4

The head of each member agency or delegate shall be the designated representative of that agency to INAHTA.

1.5

Each member agency shall designate one individual as the named INAHTA contact from that agency. All INAHTA correspondence from the Secretariat shall be addressed to INAHTA contacts.

1.6

Each member agency shall endeavor to be represented at Annual Meetings, and shall have one voting member at each meeting.

1.7

Members will provide a copy of each of their reports without charge to any other member upon request.

1.8

Members will contribute to the INAHTA database/registry promptly, and within agreed-to time frames, and in agreed-to formats.

1.9

Any member who wishes to resign may do so at any time; however, no portion of membership fees will be refunded.

1.10

Any member may be required to resign by a vote of three-quarters of the membership.

Applications and Approval Process for Membership

2.1

Applications must be made on the Form provided by the Secretariat, and submitted to the Network Coordinator. A cover letter from the appropriate authority seeking membership must also be included, together with any supporting documentation.

2.2

Applications can be made at anytime. However, the Board will consider only those applications received prior to April 15th for membership prior to the Annual Meeting of that year. Those applications received between April 15th and the Annual Meeting will be considered for membership following the Annual Meeting.

2.3

The application is considered by the Board and evaluated to determine if all the membership criteria are met.

2.4

The Board, through the Secretariat, advises the INAHTA membership of its preliminary decision regarding a membership application, and provides copies of the application, the cover letter from the appropriate authority seeking membership and any supporting documentation.

2.5

If any member agency objects to the Board's preliminary decision regarding an application for membership, this should be made in writing (email) to the Secretariat within 20 days of notification of the Board's decision.

2.6

Objections to the preliminary decision of the Board of an Agency's application can only be in relation to whether the applicant agency meets membership criteria.

2.7

If no objection to the Board's preliminary decision is received by the Secretariat within 20 days of notification, the decision by the Board becomes final.

2.8

If an objection to the Board's preliminary decision is received by the Secretariat within the time-frame allowed, this information should be provided (e-mail) by the Secretariat to all members for consideration. Members should provide comments to the Secretariat within 20 days of notification regarding the objection to the Board's decision. The Board will review and consider comments by all members prior to a final decision.

2.9

Representatives of each newly admitted agency will be introduced at the following Annual Meeting. They will be invited to make a brief statement at the meeting, but there will be no formal presentation or discussion.

INAHTA Board and Executive Committee

3.1

There shall be an INAHTA Board comprised of the Executive Committee of INAHTA, between three and five (3-5) elected Directors, and the immediate past Chair.

3.2

The Board may have no more than one member from any one country and will be elected by the membership at the annual meeting.

3.3

There shall be an Executive Committee of INAHTA comprised of representatives from three member agencies. The Chair and Vice-Chair are the Officers of the Network and the third member of the Executive Committee- Secretary/Treasurer - shall be a representative of the agency serving as Network Secretariat.

3.4

The Chair, Vice-Chair and Directors shall be elected at the annual meeting on the basis of individual merits, and not as representatives of their respective agencies for two-year terms, not to serve for more than two terms in the same function, commencing the day following the annual meeting. An individual's aggregate Board membership shall not exceed six executive years. In case of vacancy of the Chair, the Vice-Chair shall assume the Chair for the unfinished term. In that event, or in the event of a vacancy for any reason in the Vice-Chair or any Director, the Board, by majority vote, may fill a vacancy from the Membership to complete the unexpired term. The immediate Past Chair shall serve as ex-officio member of the Board.

3.5

The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare quarterly financial statements of INAHTA.

3.6

The Executive Committee shall oversee the work of the Secretariat and the Network Coordinator. It shall hold conference calls as needed, communicate in other ways, and consult with the Directors, to ensure that the work-plan approved at the Annual Meeting is adhered to.

3.7

The Executive Committee, in consultation with the Directors and the ex-officio immediate past Chair shall review and approve agendas for Annual Meetings. It shall also ensure that agenda items requiring a decision by the membership will be so identified, and supporting material be provided well in advance of the Annual Meeting.

3.8

The Directors of the INAHTA Board shall be asked to assist the Executive Committee on the work-plan approved at the Annual Meeting, in areas of communications, joint projects and relationship with developing countries as well as in other areas pertinent to the membership. Directors shall participate in teleconference calls as requested.

3.9

The Executive Committee shall review quarterly financial statements of INAHTA, and ensure that interests of the membership are protected.

3.10

The Executive Committee shall ensure that requests for direction or for decisions made to the Coordinator will be responded to in a timely manner.

3.11

The Executive Committee shall at anytime, in conjunction with the Directors and membership, establish sub-committees or working groups, as deemed necessary. One member of each sub-committee or working group shall be named as official liaison to the Executive Committee. All Sub-committees and working groups must report, through this official liaison, to the Executive Committee, in a manner and frequency to be specified by the Executive Committee.

Nomination Process for Officers and Directors

4.1

The Chair, subject to the approval by the Board, shall appoint a Nominating Committee before January 1st of an election year.

4.2

The Nominating Committee shall be chaired by the immediate Past Chair of the Network, or selected by the Chair if the immediate Past Chair is unable to serve.

4.3

The Chair, subject to approval by the Board, shall appoint to the Nominating Committee two (2) additional Members of the Network who are not currently on the Board.

4.4

In appointing the members of the Committee, the Chair shall consider geographic and cultural representation.

4.5

Nominations for Officers and Directors shall come from the Board and from the Membership.

4.6

A call for nominations by the Nominating Committee will be made by January 20th of each election year.

4.7

Nominations are to be made by April 1st of each election year.

4.8

Each nomination from the Membership must be made in writing, proposed by at least two members, and sent to the Chairman of the Nominating Committee. A person can be nominated for more than one position on the Board; each nomination must be made in writing, proposed by at least two members, and sent to the Chairman of the Nominating Committee.

4.9

The Nominating Committee shall submit to the Board by April 20th a list of candidates to be considered for nomination by the Board for election as Officers and Directors.

4.10

All candidates for the INAHTA Board must be free of any possible vested interests in matters that would be against the aim of INAHTA or otherwise conflicting to its aim.

4.11

The Secretariat will provide the membership by May 15th of each election year a ballot indicating all available positions on the Board and the candidates nominated for those positions.

4.12

Elections will take place at the Annual Meeting. The order of voting will be, if applicable, 1) Chair, 2) Vice-Chair, and 3) Directors.

4.13

In an Election for a single position, the candidate with the most votes will be elected to each position.

4.14

In an Election for multiple positions, the candidate with the most votes will be the first elected, and the candidate with the second highest number of votes will be the next elected, and the process will continue until all the positions are filled. However, in the event that more than one member from any one country is a candidate, as soon as one member is elected the other members from that country are automatically disqualified. The order of voting will be, if applicable: chair, vice-chair, and directors. Those elected will begin their terms the day following the annual meeting.

INAHTA Secretariat

5.1

The Secretariat shall be located in one of the member agencies of INAHTA. Member agencies wishing to serve as Secretariat shall advise the Network Coordinator in writing at least 90 days prior to the Annual Meeting.

5.2

The Secretariat shall be elected at the annual meeting for a term of three-years commencing the first day of the new fiscal year. Elections for a Secretariat will be held every three-years or sooner if the current Secretariat cannot fulfill its three year commitment.

5.3

The head of the agency appointed as Secretariat shall name a Network Coordinator.

5.4

During the month of January, the Secretariat shall invoice member agencies for their annual memberships.

5.5

The head of the agency serving as Secretariat shall be responsible for administering INAHTA funds, and shall approve all expenditures of such funds.

5.6

The Network Coordinator shall be responsible for ensuring that work-plans established by the membership are followed. The Coordinator shall report on progress to the Executive Committee, in a manner and frequency to be specified by the Executive Committee.

5.7

The Network Coordinator shall take minutes of the Annual Meeting and of any Executive Committee Meetings (via conference call). The Secretariat will distribute minutes of these meetings promptly to the membership.

Annual Meetings

6.1

The Annual Meeting of INAHTA shall be held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of HTAi.

6.2

The incumbent Chair shall preside over the meeting.

6.3

Each member agency will be permitted a maximum of two participants at the Annual Meeting; however, each agency will have one vote only. Additional representatives of member agencies may attend as observers, subject to space limitations. Observers shall be allowed to participate in discussions during the meeting at the discretion of the Chair.

6.4

A quorum for the transaction of business at the Annual Meeting shall consist of at least 50% of the members in good standing.

Voting of Members

7.1

INAHTA decisions shall be made on the basis of a majority vote, unless otherwise specifically stated in the By-laws.

7.2

Between Annual Meetings, voting shall place via mail or fax and within prescribed time frames. At Annual Meetings, voting shall be in person; member agencies that are unable to be represented at an Annual Meeting may cast a vote on a decision item via mail or fax prior to the meeting.

Financial

8.1

The fiscal year for INAHTA shall run from 1 January to 31 December.

8.2

Any member who is delinquent in annual dues obligations to INAHTA on the day of the Annual Meeting shall be considered in arrears, not a member in good standing and ineligible to vote and run for office, or hold office beyond the date of the annual meeting. Dues are payable within ninety days of billing. Dues should be paid in full by April 1 of each year. Any member in arrears for longer than 18 months may be required to resign by a vote of three-quarters of the membership.

Amendment of By-Laws

9.1

The By-laws of INAHTA may be repealed or amended by a two-thirds vote of the membership, but only at an Annual Meeting.

9.2

These by-laws, upon date of adoption by the Membership, shall supplant all existing by-laws of INAHTA.

Appendix A - Membership Criteria

Membership for INAHTA would be open to organizations, associations and institutions which:

• Are responsible on an ongoing basis for the coordination and/or development and operation of HTA programs, and the production of assessment reports,
• Have some ongoing, officially recognized role in relation to regional or national government,
• Are non-profit making, providing a comprehensive description of their sources of funding and other resources at least 50% of their income from public sources.
• Members will provide free access to each of their publications to any other member upon request.

Revised June 20, 2007