CMS Enhances COVID-19 Add-on Payment for New Treatments

Previously, on November 9, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published an Interim Final Rule with Comment Period, titled “Additional Policy and Regulatory Revisions in Response to the COVID–19 [Public Health Emergency,” in which CMS established the New COVID-19 Treatments Add-on Payment (NCTAP) under the Medicare Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS).  On December 18, 2020, in an effort to mitigate potential financial disincentives for hospitals to provide new COVID-19 treatments during the COVID-19 PHE, CMS announced in a Special Edition of its Medicare Learning Network (MLN) News that the Medicare program will provide an enhanced payment for eligible inpatient cases that involve use of certain new products with current Food and Drug Administration approval or emergency use authorization to treat COVID-19.  These new products include, but are not limited to, COVID-19 convalescent plasma, FDA approved remdesivir (Veklury), and baricitinib (Olumiant) in combination with remdesivir.  The NCTAP is effective from November 2, 2020, until the end of the Public Health Emergency (PHE) for COVID-19.  For additional information on the NCTAP and coding details, go to the CMS COVID-19 NCTAP webpage, click here (last updated on 12/18/2020 at 2:27 pm)