If the examinations and treatments against cancer are not accessible in the same way throughout Italy it is also due to a problem of updating the LEA, the Essential Levels of Assistance, stopped in 2001. From genomic profiling to rehabilitation, from functional recovery to new surgical techniques and radiological: tools and technologies that did not exist 20 years ago, and therefore obviously could not be included in the tariff Nomenclator. But they exist today, and their use can make a difference.
Cancer, only 68% of cancer centers can guarantee territorial assistance
by Tiziana Moriconi
The “extra LEA” situation
The LEAs were updated in 2017 but, for their effective entry into force, the approval of the Decree on the new National Nomenclator of outpatient specialist and prosthetic assistance is required, repeatedly sent back for technical checks to the Ministry of Health by the State-Regions Conference. The last postponement is on 28 September.
“In recent years, the Regions not subject to the return plan procedure have provided extra LEA services in an autonomous and uncoordinated manner, a possibility instead precluded to those in the return plan”, explains Paolo Marchetti, Scientific Director of the IDI of Rome, Ordinary of Oncology at the La Sapienza University of Rome and President of the Foundation for Personalized Medicine: “Non-LEA services include the most important tools in the fight against cancer in recent years, but patients in some regions cannot access them. territorial arises from this condition “.
Lung cancer, the recruitment of 7300 smokers for screening with spiral CT begins
by Irma D’Aria
The old rates are still in 1996 for the specialist and 1999 for prosthetics. “The new Nomenclator expands the number of services paid for and, therefore, reimbursed by the National Health Service: from 1,702 in the 1996 version to 2,108, taking into account the proposals made in the last decade by Regions, Scientific Societies and Bodies operating in the of the National Health Service “, continues the oncologist:” The document is characterized by elements of strong innovation, because it includes technologically advanced services excluding others that are now obsolete. The approval of the new Nomenclator would represent a turning point to guarantee all services uniformly on the territory”.
Female tumors: in 10 years + 34% of women live after diagnosis
by Irma D’Aria
It is urgent to overcome inequalities
In the last postponement – underlines Marchetti – the State-Regions Conference has not established a deadline for providing the requested information of economic impact. “With the result that the update of the LEA remains blocked. A very serious situation for our patients”.
In the 2017 provision on the new LEAs, a flat-rate coverage of 380 million euros a year was provided to meet the additional costs of the most up-to-date services: “A figure that from 2017 to date has exceeded 2 billion euros, regularly available to the Regions, without any information on their use “, concludes the expert:” We hope that the positions of regional inequality, which create profound discomfort in patients and their families, can be overcome as soon as possible, with further damage to those Regions that are forced to reimburse services that they cannot provide in favor of those that have already paid extra-LEA services “.