Strengthening Cybersecurity for Patient Data Protection in Europe

van Kessel, Robin; Haig, Madeleine; Mossialos, Elias

doi:10.2196/48824

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 24 publications

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“…The adoption of digital health solutions within health systems is subject to various factors, including pricing and reimbursement [ 8 , 9 , 11 - 13 ]. Pricing models in health comprise mechanisms such as cost-based pricing (ie, the price of a product is based on the cost of care provided to patients and allowable covered costs), the use of cost-effectiveness thresholds (ie, the price or quality-adjusted life-year is compared with a preset threshold), external price referencing (ie, the price of a product is based on the prices set in other countries), and value-based pricing (ie, the price is based on the value that an intervention adds to the health care process, such as improved health outcomes or reduced costs) [ 14 , 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Health Reimbursement Strategies of 8 European Countries and Israel: Scoping Review and Policy Mapping

van Kessel,

Srivastava,

Kyriopoulos

et al. 2023

JMIR Mhealth Uhealth

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Background The adoption of digital health care within health systems is determined by various factors, including pricing and reimbursement. The reimbursement landscape for digital health in Europe remains underresearched. Although various emergency reimbursement decisions were made during the COVID-19 pandemic to enable health care delivery through videoconferencing and asynchronous care (eg, digital apps), research so far has primarily focused on the policy innovations that facilitated this outside of Europe. Objective This study examines the digital health reimbursement strategies in 8 European countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom) and Israel. Methods We mapped available digital health reimbursement strategies using a scoping review and policy mapping framework. We reviewed the literature on the MEDLINE, Embase, Global Health, and Web of Science databases. Supplementary records were identified through Google Scholar and country experts. Results Our search strategy yielded a total of 1559 records, of which 40 (2.57%) were ultimately included in this study. As of August 2023, digital health solutions are reimbursable to some extent in all studied countries except Poland, although the mechanism of reimbursement differs significantly across countries. At the time of writing, the pricing of digital health solutions was mostly determined through discussions between national or regional committees and the manufacturers of digital health solutions in the absence of value-based assessment mechanisms. Financing digital health solutions outside traditional reimbursement schemes was possible in all studied countries except Poland and typically occurs via health innovation or digital health–specific funding schemes. European countries have value-based pricing frameworks that range from nonexistent to embryonic. Conclusions Studied countries show divergent approaches to the reimbursement of digital health solutions. These differences may complicate the ability of patients to seek cross-country health care in another country, even if a digital health app is available in both countries. Furthermore, the fragmented environment will present challenges for developers of such solutions, as they look to expand their impact across countries and health systems. An increased emphasis on developing a clear conceptualization of digital health, as well as value-based pricing and reimbursement mechanisms, is needed for the sustainable integration of digital health. This study can therein serve as a basis for further, more detailed research as the field of digital health reimbursement evolves.

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