Cervel Neurotech Announces CMS Issuance Of Permanent P-Codes For Outpatient Hospital Billing Of Pathogen-Reduced Platelets And Plasma

CONCORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ: CERS), a biomedical products company focused in the field of blood transfusion safety, announced today that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted permanent Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) Level II codes for pathogen-reduced platelet and plasma components. The INTERCEPT Blood System is currently the only FDA-approved system for pathogen reduction of platelet and plasma components, designed to reduce the risk of transfusion transmitted infections.

“The proportion of platelets transfused by hospitals on an outpatient basis is significant today, and continues to grow. These new billing codes now allow hospitals to bill and secure reimbursement for INTERCEPT-treated platelet and plasma components in this setting”

“The proportion of platelets transfused by hospitals on an outpatient basis is significant today, and continues to grow. These new billing codes now allow hospitals to bill and secure reimbursement for INTERCEPT-treated platelet and plasma components in this setting,” commented William “Obi” Greenman, Cerus’ president and chief executive officer. “Notably, the rate for a pathogen-reduced platelet unit represents a premium of $153.56 over the rate of $488.29 for a unit of conventional apheresis platelets. We were pleased to see strong advocacy from industry groups such as AABB, and from many other industry and clinical leaders supporting reimbursement for these innovative products.”

The new codes and payment rates, outlined in the table below, were published by CMS on October 30 in the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (HOPPS) Final Rule for CY2016 and will become effective January 1, 2016. The interim payment rates for CY2016 were based on payment rates for existing products determined by CMS to be the best proxy to pathogen-reduced blood components. Hospital claims data will be used to calculate payment rates for these new products in CY2018, per usual CMS rate-setting methods.

For more information regarding the HOPPS final rule, please visit https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2015-27943.pdf

ABOUT CERUS

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company focused in the field of blood transfusion safety. The INTERCEPT Blood System is designed to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections by inactivating a broad range of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites that may be present in donated blood. The nucleic acid targeting mechanism of action of the INTERCEPT treatment is designed to inactivate established transfusion threats, such as Hepatitis B and C, HIV, West Nile Virus and bacteria, as well as emerging pathogens such as chikungunya, malaria and dengue. Cerus currently markets and sells the INTERCEPT Blood System for both platelets and plasma in the United States, Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Middle East and selected countries in other regions around the world. The INTERCEPT red blood cell system is in clinical development. See http://www.cerus.com for information about Cerus.

INTERCEPT and the INTERCEPT Blood System are trademarks of Cerus Corporation.