- Nationwide, the NFZ secures home rehabilitation for patients. The fund has 400 contracts signed for the provision of these services. In the Świętokrzyskie region, there are 34 places where home rehabilitation is available. As a result, patients in 12 counties can benefit from the aforementioned services. - Informs Agnieszka Białas-Sitarska, spokesperson for the Świętokrzyskie branch of the NFZ.
Data from the National Health Service shows that some outpatient physiotherapy providers (about 11 percent) provide more than 20 percent of services at home. In extreme cases, it is even 99 percent. This means that such an entity has a contract with the National Health Service for outpatient rehabilitation, but de facto performs services at the patient's home, while billing them at the rate for outpatient services, which are priced higher. The difference is an average of about PLN 25 per patient.
- This market practice is detrimental to patients who have a referral for outpatient rehabilitation, as they have to wait longer to start therapy. In recent years, the number of patients who wait for outpatient physiotherapy has been increasing, and at the end of 2023 it reached more than 860,000," explains Agnieszka Białas-Sitarska, adding that the fund, in agreement with the largest representatives of the physiotherapy community, is introducing a mechanism that will allow 20 percent of outpatient home services to be performed on January 1, 2025. For the remaining 80 percent, the entity must focus on the implementation of the basic contract with the National Health Fund, i.e. the implementation of outpatient rehabilitation.
Facilities that do not have a contract for home rehabilitation will be able to enter competitions announced by the National Health Service in places where it is reasonable to strengthen the provision of these services to patients.
Home rehabilitation is intended for patients who do not move independently and do not have the ability to get to a rehabilitation facility. It is carried out on the basis of a referral from a doctor, such as a primary care provider or a rehabilitation specialist. A cycle of home rehabilitation lasts up to 80 treatment days per calendar year, with 5 treatments per day. In medically justified cases, this rehabilitation can be extended. Information on where patients can receive home rehabilitation is available on the NHF's toll-free, 24-hour hotline: 800 190 590.
compiled based on press release
