Once the new process comes into force, patients will no longer have to pay doctors’ bills in advance. Instead, the process will follow that of pharmacies, where patients only pay the percentage of the bill which is not reimbursed by the National Health Fund (CNS).
Claude Hagen explained the scheme will be rolled out to GPs and dentists, with the first tests beginning soon. “We hope the whole thing will be operational by the end of this year.”
Under the new immediate direct payment scheme, patients will only pay their proportion of the bill. The CNS will receive a notification to automatically trigger the rest of the payment to the doctor. “It is a big project where all the details have to be clarified,” Hagen said. “We need to be sure it will cover the reimbursement, while allowing for any potential IT issues, the installation at different doctors’ surgeries, and updates. It involves connecting some 6,800 health professionals to the network.”
The immediate direct payment is only possible using specialised software in doctors’ surgeries. In order to encourage the doctors to install these, the “e-santé” agency will cover the installation costs.
The software, which has been available for some years, has thus far only been installed for a few practitioners in Luxembourg. Using this system, patients have been sending their paid invoices to the CNS using an app, in order to be reimbursed within a few days. This system will continue to be available, as well as the option to send invoices by post, Hagen clarified.
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