2022 Predictions – Final Thoughts

Healthcare has had a tumultuous past two years.  Just what will the next two years look like? Will we still be discussing the pandemic impact? Our industry experts and thought leaders have shared their predictions for 2022 with us over the last few weeks. Here are some final thoughts.

Roger Massengale, Chief Commercial Officer, Eitan Medical

With emergency rooms overpopulated, doctors overwhelmed and hospitals crushing under pressure in response to the pandemic, we saw an increase in telehealth, virtual care and alternate site treatments.

In 2022, we can expect this shift to continue and strengthen with the expansion of RPM (Remote Patient Monitoring) reimbursement codes. Expected to go into effect January 1, 2022, the new RTM (Remote Therapeutic Monitoring) codes may facilitate homecare in three main areas: through allowing the reporting of non-physiologic data; by allowing self-reporting when using FDA-defined medical devices; and by the expansion of billing providers to include nurses and others.

Additionally, home-administered infusion therapies will benefit from the implementation of connected infusion devices, which will help maintain and improve communication between patient and provider. With connected pumps, providers will have access to data that will allow them to determine infusion compliance and drug adherence, enabling intervention when necessary, but also potentially saving precious nursing time.

With the benefit of data analytics, these connected devices may reveal insights that contribute to an improvement in patient outcomes and potentially to a more efficient delivery of care.