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Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System gets Medicare payment approval
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has approved the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System for a new technology add-on payment for inpatient care and a transitional pass-through payment for outpatient care, according to a news release.
The Argus II (Second Sight Medical Products) gained U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in February to treat adults with advanced retinitis pigmentosa. The CMS approval will take effect Oct. 1.
Cases involving the system eligible for new technology add-on payments under the Medicare Inpatient Prospective Payment System will use the new ICD-9-CM identification procedure code 14.81, the release said.
All hospital outpatient facilities and ambulatory surgical centers that implant the device for Medicare beneficiaries can use the CPT code 0100T.
The CMS will provide detailed information in the October update, which is expected to be released before Sept. 1.
The Argus II system includes a small external video camera, video processing unit and transmitter fixed to eyeglasses, along with electrodes implanted internally onto the patient’s retina.
The camera captures images and feeds them to the video processor, which then wirelessly transmits the information as a series of electrical pulses to the electrodes, stimulating retinal cells to produce images.