The Central and Eastern European Society of Technology Assessment in Health Care was founded in Krakow, Poland in 2003. On October 8th and 9th, the 7th symposium took place titled 'HTA for Crisis'. This meeting was attended by over 250 decision makers, evidence-based specialists, healthcare managers, commercial company personnel and experts. The symposium was principally divided into four main themes: insurance in times of crisis; importance of pricing of health services in times of crisis; managing welfare benefits in times of crisis and Health Technology Assessment in crisis-laden countries. The symposium finished by debating potential ways forward for healthcare systems in times of crisis.