Table 2.
Cost for RATS with the Japanese public health insurance system since April 2012
| Procedure | Change in cost of procedures performed in USA | Change in cost of procedures performed in Japan $1 = ¥80, average exchange rate Mar.2010-Jul.2012 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excluding robot | Including robot | Excluding robot | Including robot (price of "the Excluding robot + $6775) | ||||
| Benign | Malignant | Benign | Malignant | ||||
| Thymectomy | Thymectomy | $179837) | $24007) | $4625 | Simple resection $4625 | $11400 | Simple resection $11400 |
| Extended thymectomy | NA | $35618) | Extended resection $7003 | Extended resection $13778 | |||
| Resection of tumor A. Mediastinal B. Chest wall |
Open surgical procedures | NA | NA | A. $2313 B. $1325 |
A. $4425 B. $2713 |
A. $9088 B. $8100 |
A. $11200 B. $9488 |
| VATS | $7031 | NA | |||||
| Lobectomy | Open surgical procedures | $83689) | $54609) | $7294 | $9080 | $14069 | $15855 |
| VATS | $14799) | $7369 | $11500 | ||||
Table 2 shows the cost for dVS-surgery for 100 robotic cases per year at 1 institution with the projected JNHIS reimbursement system. RATS: robot-assisted thoracic surgery; VATS: video-assisted thoracic surgery; JNHIS: Japanese National Health Insurance System