US hospitals using innovative CAR-T treatments are facing additional costs because the health care payment system hasn't evolved fast enough to deal with such ultra-expensive therapies. The new study is a follow-up on an earlier one published in March that found that patients who received immunotherapy for cancer had higher out-of-pocket medical expenses than those receiving standard chemotherapy. Further complexities are added by the fact each US state has multiple Medicaid authorities, prompting a call for an overhaul to the reimbursement system in favour of a sustainable model.
US hospitals using innovative CAR-T treatments are facing additional costs because the health care payment system hasn't evolved fast enough to deal with such ultra-expensive therapies. While the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has agreed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the drugs, additional in-patient costs result in around a $200,000 loss per patient for hospitals. Further complexities are added by the fact each US state has multiple Medicaid authorities, prompting a call for an overhaul to the reimbursement system in favour of a sustainable model.