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vascular professional | issue 01 · 2021                                                guest  contribution











 Intergrated Care Stucture   MICADO HEALTH CARE GmbH: New management
            companies* in the healthcare system in Germany

 in a New Way  improve integrated care structures for outpatient

            operations



            BY MATTHIAS HEILMANN,

            MICADO HEALTH CARE GmbH, Hamburg, Germany




            Among other things, integrated care means          MICADO stands for „Minimally Invasive Surgery & Appli-
            better  networking  of  medical  service  provi-   cable Outpatient Surgery“. Originally, this was an initia-
            ders. To this end, in Germany contracts are        tive of contract physicians from Hamburg who had made it
            concluded between health insurers and a wide       their goal to establish and expand cooperation between
            range of service providers, such as primary care   health  insurance  companies  and  physicians  in  order  to
            physicians, specialists in private practice, hos-  make hospital-replacing operations possible. The man-
            pitals and pharmacies. This concept enables        agement  company  MICADO  Health  Care  GmbH,  which
            physicians to off  er their patients special forms   was founded in 2004, is still working up to this day ac-
            of treatment and bill them via the health insur-   cording to these guidelines. However, MICADO now off ers
            ance fund, even though these are not actually      much more than simply conclude contracts to ensure sol-
            part of the regular list of services provided by   id fi nancing for outpatient surgery.
            the respective health insurance fund.                 As a contractual partner of this management compa-
                                                               ny, physicians are able to use the available contracts with
            However, so called IV contracts (contracts for integrated   health insurers of MICADO. MICADO‘s fl at rates, some of
            care) or contracts for „special care“ are neither the norm   which are similar to diagnosis-based per-case fl at rates
            nor available nationwide in Germany, even after 20 years.   in hospitals, but some of which have fi xed prices, include
            If patients want to take advantage of a certain therapy,   around 15,000 OPS (operation and procedure code) num-
            they may have to drive hundreds of kilometers to fi nd a   bers. Doctors are free to choose which contractual ser-
            contract physician. At the same time, doctors are often   vices are to be integrated. In addition, billing is signifi cantly
            just able to off er many modern therapies to patients with   simplifi ed thanks to management companies. MICADO, for
            private health insurance or to self-pay patients. This is   example, has a so-called online grouper. This system de-
            where management companies, such as MICADO Health   termines the possible billing method (fi xed price or DRG
            Care GmbH (MICADO), come into play. On the one hand,   - Diagnosis Related Groups system) for your treatment, as
            they conclude contracts with numerous health insurance   well as the associated remuneration. In addition, clients
            companies, which benefi t from being able to off er their   receive all the necessary information there that must be
            clients a broader range of services, and on the other hand   taken into account when billing for the individual treat-
            with physicians, who can bill the management compa-  ment case. You only have exclusive access to this online
            ny for these treatments on an extrabudgetary basis and   grouper as a contractual partner.
            without any problems. In the fi eld of phlebology and vas-  MICADO currently is running contracts with over 40
            cular surgery, MICADO off ers minimally invasive endolu-  diff erent company health insurance funds (BKKs), inclu-
            minal treatment methods for varicose veins, such as laser   ding Siemens Betriebskrankenkasse, pronova BKK, vivda
            therapy and radiofrequency therapy. Reimbursement is   BKK, BKK MTU, BMW BKK, Continentale BKK, BKK Linde,
            made promptly via performance-based fl at rates, which   BKK Stadt Augsburg and BKK Pfalz. There are also con-
            also include material costs incurred.              tracts with the Hanseatische Krankenkasse (HEK) (Han-





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