February 2, 2024
This week, during a House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing on Health Care Spending in the United States, Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) addressed Medicare costs and the potential for home infusion to lead to significant cost savings.
“Many of you have heard me speak about my experience with home infusion,” says Dingell. “Several studies in fact have found that home infusion can lead to significant cost savings when compared to inpatient costs.”
Rep. Dingell then asked witness Sophia Tripoli, MPH, Senior Director of Health Policy at Families USA, if she believed transitioning care away from traditional health care settings can be an effective way to reduce costs and improve patient outcomes.
“Absolutely,” said Tripoli. “We know that shifting out of institutionalized care into the home or community setting with appropriate levels of care and support is not only important for consumers and patients maintaining their dignity, but also is critical for having emotional connectedness, which has a direct impact on quality of life.”
Related to cost savings, Tripoli went on to say, “The shifting into community-based settings does have a cost savings effect, and I think on average about 30-35% in reduced savings because of that shift.”
Dingell is a cosponsor of the “Preserving Patient Access to Home Infusion Act (H.R.4104),” which would address issues with Medicare coverage that would allow greater patient access to this home-based therapy.
CMS released its annual monitoring report[link] on the Medicare Part B Home Infusion Therapy (HIT) Services benefit showing that both provider participation and beneficiary utilization have declined over the past year.
The National Home Infusion Association (NHIA) has developed recommendations for commercial, Medicaid, and Medicare Advantage payors to improve patient outcomes and experience, reduce administrative burden, and improve timely access to home infusion services.
The Joe Fiandra Access to Home Infusion Act (H.R. 5397) was introduced in the House of Representatives in September of 2023, and mirrors a 2020 proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to modify the DMEPOS external infusion pump benefit. NHIA has developed a summary document for members explaining the bill.
