Reimbursement of Day Case Surgery Procedures in Europe (Report #33)

Day case surgery, also known as same-day surgery, refers to surgical procedures where patients are admitted, operated on, and discharged within the same day without requiring an overnight hospital stay. From a reimbursement perspective, day case surgery provides important benefits for both healthcare providers and payers. These benefits include reduced healthcare costs associated with overnight hospital stays, increased efficiency in healthcare delivery, and improved resource utilization. 

Although shifting procedures from inpatient hospital environments to outpatient day case procedures provides notable clinical and financial advantages, the integration of technologies in these day case contexts may be obstructed by reimbursement systems that do not provide financial incentives for day case procedures and surgeries. As a result, it is vital for medical device companies to have a good understanding of the reimbursement environment for day case procedures.

This white paper explores the reimbursement systems for day case (ambulatory) surgery in England, France, Germany, and Switzerland. With examples of several case studies, it highlights how reimbursement frameworks incentivize or inadvertently hinder the adoption of day case procedures.