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Medicare: Coverage of Pumps Used to Administer Intravenous Drugs

HEHS-99-16R Published: Nov 16, 1998. Publicly Released: Dec 16, 1998.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the advantages and disadvantages of providing Medicare coverage for disposable infusion pumps, focusing on: (1) the clinical benefits and limitations of disposable infusion pumps; (2) the factors that affect whether a durable or disposable infusion pump is less expensive to use for home infusion; (3) some Medicaid and private insurance plans' home infusion therapy coverage policies; and (4) issues raised by Medicare's policy that links coverage of intravenous (IV) drugs to the use of durable infusion pumps.

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