The Institute for Health Technology Assessment (IATS, in Portuguese) aims to support the development of health care strategies in governmental and non-governmental instances. IATS will constitute a network furnishing knowledge in this field, proposing to evaluate the economic, ethical and public health consequences of the new technologies incorporation by public and private health care providers in Brazil. It will be composed by institutions and research groups of recognized excellence in this area in Brazil and will expand current associations with international institutions. In so doing, it will strengthen and extend the Brazilian expertise in this field, preparing new human resources and support a greater understanding of the issues of technology transfer among health care providers and the public in general. It will additionally undertake original investigations to answer questions of interest of the health care providers and patients, focusing on risks of disease, efficacy and effectiveness of interventions and the diagnostic performance of new technologies. The creation of IATS is based on a methodological platform of support for research in HTA which includes clinical and epidemiological investigations such as randomized clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and economic analyses in relevant areas.