English National Tariff Payment System for 2017/18 and 2018/19 has been published
NHS England and NHS Improvement published 2017/18 and 2018/19 National Tariff Payment System 22nd of December 2016. National Tariff is used for reimbursement of majority of hospital and out-patient specialist services in England.
The features of the new Tariff among others include:
- The Tariff is approved for two-year period for the first time to ensure sustainability of the system and that providers and commissioners can appropriately adapt to changes
- New Innovation and Technology Tariff will be introduced
o The aim is setting incentives to encourage the uptake and spread of innovative medical technologies that benefit patients
o Five technologies will be funded during 3-year period and sixth technology (Urolift) is already included into National Tariff. Clinical Commissioning Groups will initially pay for technologies, but NHS England will reimburse their cost later
- New HRG system will be introduced (HRG4+). HRG4+ will include significantly large number of HRGs, as key groups will be broken down into several sub-groups depending on severity level or presence of complications
- Several new HRGs with national tariff will be introduced:
o cochlear implants (CA41Z, CA42Z)
o complex computerised tomography scans (RD28Z)
o complex therapeutic endoscopic, upper or lower gastrointestinal procedures
o (FZ89Z)
o photodynamic therapy (JC46Z, JC47A and JC47B)
- Section about nuclear medicine will be redesigned into two sections for diagnostic imaging and nuclear medicine procedures.
- Several changes will be made to the Best Practice Tariffs:
o Two new BPTs will be introduced: for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) care and for improving the time from a patient being admitted to receiving coronary angioplasty for patients with NSTEMI
o BPT for interventional radiology will be removed as there is no need for it in the HRG4+ system