Comparison of costs for infusion versus bolus chemotherapy administration--Part two: Use of charges versus reimbursement for cost basis

✍ Scribed by Jacob J. Lokich; Cherie L. Moore; Norwood R. Anderson

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1996
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 344 KB
• Volume: 78
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0008-543X
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0142(19960715)78:2<300::aid-cncr17>3.0.co;2-#

✦ Synopsis

BACKGROUND.

The costs of infusion versus bolus administration of chemotherapy has been a point of controversy as has been the method of quantitating the cost. The present study analyzes the reimbursement for chemotherapy administration by infusion compared with bolus delivery based on reimbursement and relates this to cost based on projected charges and actual charges in a private practice setting. METHODS. Actual reimbursement records were retrieved for selected patients receiving infusion or bolus administration of specific chemotherapy regimens for three tumors: colon carcinoma, breast carcinoma, and lymphoma. All services were included except for radiology and hospitalization. Medicare reimbursement represented 90% of the treatment cycles analyzed.

RESULTS.

Actual reimbursement per month for each infusion regimen was as follows: colon carcinoma, $528