How is intensive care reimbursed? A review of eight European countries

Martin-Immanuel Bittner, Maria Donnelly, Arthur RH van Zanten, Jakob Steen Andersen, Bertrand Guidet, Jose Javier Trujillano Cabello, Shane Gardiner, Gerard Fitzpatrick, Bob Winter, Michael Joannidis, Axel Schmutz

Reimbursement schemes in intensive care are more complex than in other areas of healthcare, due to special procedures and high care needs. Knowledge regarding the principles of functioning in other countries can lead to increased understanding and awareness of potential for improvement. This can be achieved through mutual exchange of solutions found in other countries. In this review, experts from eight European countries explain their respective intensive care unit reimbursement schemes. Important conclusions include the apparent differences in the countries' reimbursement schemes-despite all of them originating from a DRG system-, the high degree of complexity found, and the difficulties faced in several countries when collecting the data for this collaborative work. This review has been designed to assist the intensivist clinician and researcher in understanding neighbouring countries' approaches and in putting research into the context of a European perspective. In addition, steering committees and decision makers might find this a valuable source to compare different reimbursement schemes.