BRUSSELS, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Wednesday announced in a statement that it had proposed a new regulation to enhance cooperation among European Union (EU) member states on assessing health technology.

The Regulation on Health Technology Assessment (HTA) will cover new medicines and some new medical devices, according the statement.

The HTA usually refers to a systematic evaluation of the properties and effects of a health technology.

The Commission said that the EU level cooperation in this field would benefit patients, national authorities and manufacturers, for patients will access to information on the added clinical value of new technology, national authorities can formulate policies for health systems based on more robust evidence, while industry do not have to adapt to different national procedures.

Member states will cooperate in four major areas: joint clinical assessments focusing on the most innovative health technologies, joint scientific consultations, identification of emerging health technologies, and continuing voluntary cooperation in other areas.

According to the Commission, this proposal will be discussed by the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers. Once it is adopted, it will be applicable three years later.