Diagnostic imaging

On March 31, 2022, NHS Digital released HRG4+ Local Payment Grouper for 2022/23 for use from April 01, 2022. In general, there are significant changes in base HRG design. A total of 120 new HRGs were created, and multiple HRGs were removed, so the total number increased by 62 from 2,838 to 2,900.

In February 2021, the Clinical Coding and Schedule Development (CCSD) working group, which develops and maintains procedural and diagnostics nomenclature for private payers in England, published Bulletins 0182 and 0079 with changes to be implemented no later than April 10, 2022. Three new procedure codes concerned robotic surgery in orthopaedic area, spinal procedures, and ophthalmology, and five new diagnostic codes were introduced.

In February 2022, the Finnish Coordinating Center for Health Technology Assessment announced the release of the seven accomplished rapid hospital assessments performed by the Helsinki, Tampere, and Oulu University Hospital. The accomplished rapid HTAs concern the diagnostic imaging, e-Health, endocrine, endoscopy, men’s health, neuromodulation technology groups.

On January 18, 2022, the Ministry of Health has awarded the Framework Agreement for the acquisition of 81 linear accelerators included in the High-End Technology Equipment Investment Plan. Furthermore, the National Institute of Health Management (INGESA) has also initiated the processing of the Framework Agreement that will facilitate the acquisition of the equipment in the fields of interventional cardiology, interventional vascular radiology, interventional neurovascular, digital brachytherapy, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, PET-CT, SPECT-CT.

In September 2021, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in England released two MedTech-related reports in its Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Journal, which concerned non-invasive imaging software for coronary stenosis assessment (QAngio XA 3D/QFR and CAAS vFFR) and quantitative fetal fibronectin test to predict preterm labor. HTA Journal publishes research reports on the effectiveness, costs, and broader impact of health technologies for those who use, manage, and provide care in the NHS and informs National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance.

At the beginning of September 2021, the Government of the Russian Federation released the preliminary version of the Program of State Guarantees for the period of 2022-2024. Major changes concerned the High-End Medical Care (HEMC) list I, where two new procedures in the cardiovascular and neurovascular field were added. The HEMC list II was expanded with the procedures in the field of radiotherapy, neurology, and neurosurgery, surgical procedures. The final version is expected at the beginning of 2022.

At the end of August 2021, the Swedish Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency (TLV) has initiated a theme survey on digital image diagnostics to identify new and innovative technology that may become important in Swedish healthcare. This could lead to potential inclusion of the technology in the Orderly introduction of medical technologies framework. The suggestions could be submitted no later than September 24, 2021.

On August 16, 2021, the preliminary version of OPS 2022 was published. Numerous content updates and new procedure codes concern chapters 5 “Operations” and 8 “Non-operative therapeutic measures”. Also, minor changes were made in chapters 1, “Diagnostic measures” and 3, “Diagnostic imaging”.New codes were introduced in the peripheral vascular, cardiovascular, nephrology and urology, endoscopy, gastroenterology, otorhinolaryngology, interventional radiology, orthopedics, pulmonary and airways, and other fields of care.

In July 2021, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published one new Interventional Procedure Guidance (inducing and maintaining normothermia using temperature modulation devices to improve outcomes after stroke or subarachnoid hemorrhage) and four new Medtech Innovation Briefings (HealthVCF for detecting vertebral compression fractures on CT scans, trublood-prostate for triaging and diagnosing people with prostate cancer symptoms, AI technologies for detecting diabetic retinopathy, and Acumen IQ sensor for predicting hypotension risk).