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Medicare
Agrees to Pay for Heart Device The
Associated Press The decision had been expected, but was significantly
delayed - partially because of the cost. Some doctors worried, however, that many of the 100,000
patients who could benefit may not receive the device because hospitals
won't be willing to absorb the difference between the cost of the device
and the procedure and what the government will pay. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it
will pay $75,000, which is more than the $55,000 originally expected.
However, doctors put the total cost of the device and operation at
$150,000 to $200,000. Other patients may not get the device because the
government said it will pay for the procedure only when it is done in
designated heart transplant centers that have implanted the HeartMate at
least 15 times since January 1, 2001. Thoratec said that makes about 60 centers eligible to
implant the device, and they account for approximately 80 percent of all
procedures done in the The HeartMate device is implanted near the heart. Blood
drains through a tube from the left ventricle, the heart's main pumping
chamber, and is circulated through the body. A second tube extends outside
the body and is attached to a battery pack, worn on a shoulder holster. The government had already paid for HeartMate to be used
for patients awaiting heart transplants. The latest approval means
patients who are ineligible for transplants because of other health
problems can receive the device as a permanent treatment - known as
destination therapy. "We are extremely gratified to receive a favorable
Medicare reimbursement outcome for destination therapy, and we are very
encouraged by the content of the decision analysis itself," Thoratec
president and chief executive Keith Grossman said. Grossman had previously said Thoratec will help
hospitals apply to the government for additional money and hopes to bring
reimbursement to $100,000. Thoratec shares were down 29 cents to close at $16.41 on
the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging |
