UK

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 2022, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in England released six MedTech-related reports in its Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Journal, which concerned biomarkers for assessing acute kidney injury, non-invasive testing for neovascular macular degeneration, decision support tool to prevent falls in older people, endometrial scratch, distal radius fracture, and test for group B Streptococcus. 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.

On March 31, 2022, NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) released the 2022/23 National Tariff Payment System (NTPS) to come into force on April 01, 2022. The aligned payment and incentive (API) model remains the central part of the 2022/23 NTPS, covering all secondary healthcare services, with few exceptions (e.g., diagnostic imaging, the contract value is lower than £30 million). National DRG (HRG) tariffs only remain for diagnostic imaging; other tariffs are published for benchmark purposes. Four new device categories were included, and two existing categories were updated to cover more devices in the 2022/23 High Cost Device List; In 2022/23, all High Cost devices are excluded from the fixed element and funded on a cost and volume basis.

In February 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published two new Interventional Procedure Guidance (stereotactic radiosurgery for trigeminal neuralgia, and microwave ablation for primary or metastatic cancer in the lung), two new Diagnostic Guidance (EarlyCDT Lung for assessing the risk of lung cancer in solid lung nodules, PredictSURE IBD and IBDX to guide treatment of Crohn's disease), and four new Medtech Innovation Briefings (Insides System for managing intestinal failure, d-Nav insulin management app for type 2 diabetes, GaitSmart for personalized exercise rehabilitation, AposHealth for knee osteoarthritis)

On March 03, 2022, NHS England and NHS Improvement published a research demand signaling document for the National Stroke Programme. This document highlights the priority areas for research to inform national policy and support the NHS Long Term Plan targets. One of the high-priority areas is the technology for diagnosis, including artificial Intelligence solutions, innovative triage tools, technologies for the early and accurate diagnosis/detection of stroke.

In March 2022, NHS England opened a call for applications to the High Cost Device List (HCDL) changes for the 2023/24 National Tariff Payment System. The completed application form should be submitted via email by May 31, 2022. HCDL items are then either included in a fixed payment or paid in addition to the price of the related service.

In March 2022, NHS England and NHS Improvement published the MedTech Funding Mandate (MTFM) policy for 2022/23, which will come into force on April 01, 2022. The MTFM launched in 2021 to support NICE-approved and cost-saving devices, diagnostics, and digital products. Commissioners must fund technologies included in MTFM.

The NHS Insights Prioritisation Programme (NIPP) is commissioned by the NHS Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). It is designed to accelerate the evaluation and implementation of innovation that supports post-pandemic ways of working, builds service resilience, and delivers benefits to patients. Fourteen projects have been funded and have now commenced activity that will be ongoing until March 2023.

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 February 04, 2022, NHSX announced merging with NHS Digital into the new Transformation Directorate at NHS England. NHSX's mission will remain the same - to drive the digital transformation of the NHS and social care.

On February 02, 2022, NHS England updated the 2021/22 National Genomic Test Directory for rare and inherited diseases, initially published in October 2021. No new codes were introduced. Amendments were made in 77 codes, including changing the test method, commissioning category, specialist group.

A new multi-agency advisory service (MAAS) is currently under development by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE). This new cross-regulatory service will be a “one-stop-shop” for support, information, and guidance on the regulation and evaluation of AI technologies. The launch of the new service is scheduled for summer 2022.