Percutaneous ablation

Eleven new DRGs have been added in 2019, while three DRGs have been deleted. The significant changes have been made for disorders of the circulatory organs (MDC 5) and musculoskeletal, skeletal and connective tissue disorders associated with prosthetic surgery (MDC 8). They concern insertion of vagus stimulator, ablation of heart, percutaneous valve replacement, and others.

The report presents a summary of reimbursement situation for percutaneous ablation procedures for diseases of lung, prostate, kidney, liver and bone. Different types of ablation methods are considered in the report, including radiofrequency ablation, cryoablation, microwave ablation. Thermal ablation is not considered. The analysis covers procedure coding, payment mechanism, reimbursement tariffs and policy restrictions in 11 EU countries including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.