CMS touts ‘ more flexibility ’ in new TAVR coverage requirements

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have proposed new policy that could expand the use of transcatheter aortic valve replacement procedures, touting that it may provide more flexibility for starting and maintaining TAVR programs. The original National Coverage Determination for TAVR procedures was cleared in 2012, when the technology and associated procedure was still new. The new policy from CMS looks to update requirements based on new information about the safety and viability of the procedures. The new proposal, released yesterday, would reduce the number of cardiac surgeons required to independently examine and evaluate patient suitability for open aortic valve replacement surgery or TAVR from two to one. “We believe this modification is appropriate given the advancements and progress made since 2012 as TAVR becomes more widely performed,” CMS wrote in its proposal. Volume requirements for existing TAVR programs at hospitals looking to receive CMS reimbursement were raised slightly, according to the new proposal. Previously, hospitals were only required to perform 20 aortic valve replacements per year or 40 per two years – that requirement has been more than doubled to either 50 AVRs per year or 100 AVRs per two years. For new programs looking to begin TAVR programs, the volume requirements stayed mostly the same, but language was shifted from 50 total AVRs per year to 50 open heart surgeries in the year prior to the program launch and at least 2...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Business/Financial News Cardiac Implants Cardiovascular Replacement Heart Valves Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Source Type: news