Despite a recent decision by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) not to create a unique reimbursement code (HCPCS) for thermal fuses – safety devices designed to prevent fatalities and injuries in the event of a fire involving home oxygen – the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) remains committed to its campaign to promote broader adoption of these life-saving devices.
In January, CMS reaffirmed its position that thermal fuses are considered part of the overhead costs for suppliers providing home oxygen equipment.
Chief Ray Reynolds, co-chair of the IAFC’s Working Group on Home Oxygen Therapy Fires, said: “The CMS decision is disappointing to the many stakeholders – fire safety experts, burns clinicians, homecare industry professionals, patient groups, and academics – who contributed to the request for a unique reimbursement code. The evidence presented was compelling, clearly demonstrating that the current reimbursement structure is inadequate to cover the additional costs incurred by home oxygen installers.”
Reynolds emphasized the IAFC’s ongoing commitment to improving patient safety: “We will continue to gather and present further evidence to CMS at the earliest opportunity,” he added.
Richard Radford, Managing Director of BPR Medical, added: “We presented CMS with clear evidence showing that bidirectional thermal fuses can significantly reduce the burden on healthcare systems by preventing severe burns from fires involving home oxygen. However, only a small fraction of home oxygen installers currently purchase thermal fuses without reimbursement, despite 95 percent recognizing that they are effective. This shows that the current funding framework is insufficient.”
Despite this setback, Radford reiterated BPR Medical’s commitment to advancing thermal fuse adoption. “We remain focused on ensuring that all home oxygen patients have access to bidirectional thermal fuses. We will continue our efforts to advocate for state-level funding through Health & Human Services departments, who have the authority to fund them via their Medicaid systems.”
Currently, all home oxygen patients served by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) are provided with bidirectional thermal fuses. In addition, the states of Iowa, Washington, North Dakota, Kansas, and Missouri are leading the way by either funding the devices through their state Medicaid systems or requiring home medical equipment companies to install them.
