New progress has been made in the reimbursement of 3D printed medical models

3D printingThe role of medical models and surgical guides in realizing precise surgery and reducing the difficulty of complex surgery has gradually been recognized by many medical disciplines. However, the related expenses cannot be reimbursed through medical insurance, which is one of the obstacles to the unpopularization of such applications.

Including tumors (purple), aorta and iliac arteries and renal arteries (pink), veins (blue) and collecting ducts (yellow)3D printingKidney model.

One step closer to normalizing applications

Digital Orthopedics3D printingProfessor Chengtao Wang from Shanghai Jiaotong University, an expert in the field of technology, once said,3D printingThe application of medical models and guides in hospitals will soon become the norm. The Digital Medicine Branch of the Chinese Medical Association released3D printingThe consensus of model experts listed 9 indications to make the application more standardized. This printed content has been widely used in hepatobiliary surgery and urology.Although there are3D printingThe actual demand for technology, but the related medical expenses cannot be reimbursed through medical insurance, is one of the obstacles that these technologies have not yet become a normal technology in clinical practice.For this reason, many people at home and abroad have benefited from3D printingTechnical medical institutions are advancing3D printingReimbursement of medical models and surgical guides.

my country’s 12 ministries and commissions issued a document stating that the issue of charging standards and medical insurance will be resolved in 2020.On July 1, the American Medical Association (AMA) approved the use of3D printingThe “Common Medical Procedure Code” code (CPT code) for medical model and surgical guide reimbursement will be officially used. It can be said that this is a substantial milestone and will promote3D printingThe popularization of medical models and guides has also promoted other countries3D printingThe expense reimbursement of models and guides provides a certain reference.

According to China3D printingWang learned that the American Medical Association (AMA) has approved four new CPT Class III codes:

-Code 0559T and 0560T are suitable for the production of separately prepared3D printingReimbursement of an anatomical model, which can consist of one or more parts with unique colors and materials.

-Codes 0561T and 0562T cover the use of patient imaging data to produce personalization3D printingSurgical guide.

These four new Type III codes are temporary codes. AMA experts are collecting data and extracting these3D printingThe clinical value of medical devices, thereby promoting the acquisition of permanent codes.To this end, the American College of Radiology (ACR) and RSNA are collaborating to establish a3D printingData registry.The goals of the registration form include showing3D printingThe ever-growing applications, used for different conditions3D printingTypical cases (and the most common types of3D printingModel), record the preparation and confirmation required to generate the model3D printingThe clinical utility of anatomical models and surgical guides.Clinicians are pushing3D printingThe model and surgical guide should be accurately recorded during the process of obtaining medical insurance reimbursement3D printingThe content required for the process, such as the time required for cutting and manufacturing the model, can be submitted to the registry as the basis for obtaining reimbursement.

Reivew

when3D printingThe problem of reimbursement of medical models and surgical guides has been solved. When it is popularized in more hospitals, hospitals will face the problem of how to realize the design and manufacture.In China, the few tertiary hospitals such as Shanghai Ninth People’s Hospital and Renji Hospital have their own3D printingcenter.But currently these3D printingThe design of the device still needs the support of professional engineers. The combination of medicine and engineering, manual design, and switching between different software is an indispensable process. However, the number of engineers in hospitals is limited, and not every hospital has enough resources to meet the needs of future popularization.

In the short term, it will be produced by a third-party professional processing service organization similar to the dental laboratory’s service model3D printingMedical models and surgical guides may become the choice of more hospitals. In this process, cloud centers that facilitate medical-industrial interaction, data transmission and data tracing, and smarter design software will become the core technologies.

GE and Philips, which provide medical imaging technology, are promoting integrated solutions that integrate medical imaging technology with 3D model design and printing.Philips released a new version of medical vision analysis and quantification software in 2016, which integrates the 3D imaging and quantification of medical models.3D printingFunction for generating accurate3D printingThe medical model provides convenience. GE Healthcare is exploring whether it can quickly and directly complete the modeling process with CT scan data and transmit it directly to3D printingMachine, thereby cutting off several stages of manual conversion in the middle.Realize medical imaging, three-dimensional modeling,3D printingThe seamless connection is the general trend.When the technology involved is smart enough, perhaps the hospital3D printingThe machine completes the output of the intelligent software3D printingThe medical model will become the standard configuration of the hospital.

(Editor in charge: admin)