Ophthalmological procedures

On December 1, 2022, the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health published the changes that will occur to the Services Ordinance (KLV/OPre), which determines coverage of medical services in Switzerland. The updates will enter into force on January 1, 2023, and they relate to the list of explicitly evaluated services (Annex 1 of KLV/OPre), outpatient-before-hospital services (Annex 1a), List of Tools and Appliances(Annex 2), and List of Analyses (Annex 3).

In November 2022, the Danish Health Data Agency (Sundhedsdatastyrelsen) published the DRG tariffs, as well as psychiatric and rehabilitation rates for 2023. Later, on December 1, 2022, the DRG tariff system (Takstsystem) guide for 2023 was also published. Among other changes, nine new DRGs, specifically in ENT, e-health, neurology and neurosurgery, ophthalmology, intensive care and OR, cardiovascular, and IVD fields, were introduced.

In November 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published five new Interventional Procedure Guidance (extracorporeal shockwave therapy for calcific tendinopathy in the shoulder, balloon disimpaction of the baby's head at emergency cesarean, percutaneous ultrasound-guided microwave ablation for benign thyroid nodules, ab interno canaloplasty for open-angle glaucoma, tunnelled peritoneal drainage catheter insertion), and two new Medical Technologies Guidance (GreenLight XPS, Optilume). Also, one new clinical guideline was published, and one was updated.

In October 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published two new Interventional Procedure Guidance (YAG laser vitreolysis for symptomatic vitreous floaters, transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the supraorbital nerve for treating and preventing migraine), one Medical Technologies Guidance (Magtrace and Sentimag system for locating sentinel lymph nodes for breast cancer) and three new Medtech Innovation Briefings (O2matic PRO 100, Daylight, Signatera). Also, one new clinical guideline was published on osteoarthritis.

In June 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published three new Interventional Procedure Guidance (vertebral body tethering for idiopathic scoliosis, nerve graft for corneal denervation, and synthetic cartilage implant insertion for first metatarsophalangeal joint osteoarthritis). Also, four new clinical guidelines were published.

The French National Authority for Health released new recommendations about add-on reimbursement of medical devices and medical aids from the meetings of the National Commission for Evaluation of Medical Devices and Health Technologies in June 2022. Nineteen recommendations were published in relation to the registration, modification of registration conditions, and renewal of registration for devices in the List of reimbursable products and services. Opinions concern cardiovascular, interventional radiology, orthopedic, neurovascular and neuromodulation, ophthalmology, as well as medical aids.

On May 31, 2022, a decision of the National Union of Health Insurance Funds relating to the update of the Nomenclatures of procedures - Common classification of medical procedures (CCAM) and General nomenclature of professional acts (NGAP) - was published in the Official Journal of the French Republic. Various changes were introduced in the CCAM, such as the inclusion of new procedure codes, provisionally registered codes, and modification of the billing conditions. New CCAM codes were introduced in the field of ophthalmology, men’s health, and diagnostic imaging. These changes will be reflected in version 70 of the CCAM nomenclature, which will enter into force on June 30, 2022.

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.

On January 28, 2022, the Institute for the Hospital Remuneration System (InEK) has published the list of the requests for innovation funding (NUB) that were submitted by the hospitals in 2021. The medical technologies belonging to the cardiovascular, ENT, eHealth, gastrointestinal, neuromodulation, neurovascular, orthopedic, and other technology groups obtained positive status 1.

On January 20, 2022, the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) launched a consultation on the latest set of guidance (List 3) of the Evidence-based Interventions (EBI) Programme. EBI program develops guidance sets (Lists) for tests, treatments, and procedures based on recommendations from the Expert Advisory Committee and NICE assessments. Proposed List 3 covers 17 interventions across a range of medical specialties, including cardiology, ophthalmology, urology, and others. The deadline for comments submission is March 31, 2022.

In December 2021, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in England released two MedTech-related reports in its Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Journal, which concerned improving continence in children and young people with neurodisability, and augmented trabeculectomy in glaucoma. 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.

In November 2021, the Clinical Coding and Schedule Development (CCSD) working group, which develops and maintains procedural and diagnostics nomenclature for private payers in England, has published Bulletins 0180 and 0077 with changes to be implemented no later than February 01, 2022. Four new procedure codes related to neurology, spinal procedures, cancer pharmacotherapy, and ophthalmology, and three new diagnostic codes were introduced.