In late November – early December 2023, the application period for 2025 ICD-10-GM (German modification of ICD-10 diagnosis codes), OPS (procedure codes), and DRG changes was opened by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) and the Institute for Hospital Remuneration Systems (INeK) respectively.

In December 2023, the Clinical Coding and Schedule Development (CCSD) working group, which develops and maintains procedural and diagnostics nomenclatures for private payers in England, published Bulletins with changes to be implemented no later than February 12, 2024. Five new procedure codes (concerning endoscopy, gastrointestinal, and spine) and one new in-vitro diagnostic code were introduced.

On December 21, 2023, the revised EBM (German Uniform Evaluation Standard) catalog for the first quarter of 2024 was published. The most significant changes concern the update of Annex 2 of the catalog, the introduction of the new EBM codes for external electrical cardioversion in adult and pediatric patients, follow-up and evaluation of the health app companion patella, as well as a companion diagnostics test for genotyping to determine CYP2C19 metabolism status.

On November 29, 2023, 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 or July 1, 2024, 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 Equipment (Annex 2), and List of Analyses (Annex 3).

On December 04, 2023, the Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency initiated its work on a few more health economic assessments of Sedaconda-ACD by Sedana Medical, a disposable product for administering anesthetic gases for patients treated on a ventilator and an alternative to intravenous anesthetics as well as robotic systems for spine surgery, including ExcelsiusGPS by Globus Medical, Mazor X Stealth by Medtronic, Cirq by Brainlab. The assessments are planned to be accomplished during 2024.

On December 7, 2023, NHS England confirmed the next steps in delegating commissioning responsibilities for specialised services to local commissioners - integrated care boards (ICBs). In the first step, selected specialised services have been delegated to Joint Committees of ICBs and NHS England Regions since April 2023. The next steps include the full delegation of suitable services to certain ICBs from April 2024. Regardless of delegation status, NHS England will remain the accountable commissioner for specialised services and responsible for developing national service specifications and clinical commissioning policies.

Continuous glucose monitoring (rtCGM) and flash glucose monitoring (FGM) for adults with type 1 diabetes have been evaluated within the "New Methods" framework since June 2023. In November 2023, a simplified method assessment report was published. On December 11, 2023, the Decision Forum for "New Methods" recommended introducing rtCGM and FGM.

In November 2023, the Norwegian Directorate of e-Health released an updated version of the Norwegian Laboratory Code (NLK) system and associated tariffs to be implemented no later than January 1, 2024. Eighty-four new codes were added, 77 codes were amended, and 32 codes were terminated.

Market access eventually comes down to the hospital or individual payer level. Interactive digital tools are the essential instrument to present the value of medical technologies. MTRC launched a service of digital health economic models to present the clinical and economic value of medical technologies to hospital administrators and payers. MTRC combines an unparalleled knowledge of market access realities, drivers and barriers to the adoption of medical technologies, costing for healthcare services in 34 European countries, health economic technical expertise, and the capacity to develop nice-looking digital presentation tools at a moderate cost. See a live demo of the digital model on the website.

Market access is a rapidly changing field and the landscape varies from country to country. To provide an additional, easy-to-access source of high-level information about key themes in the market access landscape for medical technologies and in-vitro diagnostic tests, MTRC launched Knowledge Zone on the website. Currently, Knowledge Zone includes information about the payment model, funding (post-reimbursement approval by payers), and role of HTA for five key European countries: England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. In the coming weeks, the Zone will expand to other European countries.

On November 22, 2023, the Swiss Federal Council approved the digital transformation program in the healthcare system to accelerate the implementation of the Swiss health data space. To implement the program over ten years (2025 – 2034), the Federal Council is applying to Parliament for a commitment loan of 392 million francs.

On December 1, 2023, the Belgian National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (INAMI/RIZIV) updated several articles of the Nomenclature. New procedure codes with reimbursement fees and associated conditions concerning cardiovascular, neurology, and obstetrics fields were added.